I put off reading this book. Frankly, I’ve grown so attached to Aubrey and Maturin that I was not looking forward to the career disaster and legal troubles I knew were about to befall Jack.
All in O'Brian
Patrick O'Brian's THE MAURITIUS COMMAND
The book starts out with Jack, reduced to half pay while he awaits a command, surrounded by his family (and mother in law) in a shabby English country “estate” where he is proving unequivocally that he does not have the makings of a farmer.
One day his friend Steven visits and announces that Jack will receive orders and a command. Jack’s assignment: assume command of a small fleet and retake two islands in the Indian Ocean from the French.
Dean King's A SEA OF WORDS
Dean King, with John B. Hattendorf and J. Worth Estes, authored this third edition subtitled “A Lexicon and Companion to the Complete Seafaring Tales of Patrick O’Brian.”
This is a perfect example of a good “grazing book.” You can dip into it at any time and find something interesting.
Patrick O'Brian's THE POST CAPTAIN
Writing about the writing in Patrck O’Brian’s splendid novel The Post Captain requires an act of humility. As an example of the potential glories of written English, this book is a nonpareil.
Patrick O'Brian's MASTER AND COMMANDER
What comes across in the pages of this novel is real, palpable, and authentic sounding. Reading about the friendship of Jack Aubrey and physician Maturin, with side references to music, science, medicine, Ireland, the Catalan language, courts martial, outdoor dinner parties disrupted by drunken sailors, and old Barcelona, is as vivid as history can get.