Kydd
Thomas Kydd 1
-
- 4,49 €
-
- 4,49 €
Publisher Description
'In Stockwin's hands the sea story will continue to entrance readers across the world' - Guardian
Thomas Paine Kydd, a young wig-maker from Guildford, is seized by the press gang to be a part of the crew of the 98-gun line-of-battle ship Royal William. The ship sails immediately and Kydd has to learn the harsh realities of shipboard life fast. Despite all the danger of tempest and battle he goes through, he comes to admire the skills and courage of the seamen - taking up the challenge himself to become a true sailor.
Based on dramatic real events, it is classic storytelling at its very best, rich with action with exceptional characters and a page-turning narrative.
*********************
What readers are saying about KYDD
'A cracking good read' - 5 stars
'A first-class job' - 5 stars
'A terrific book' - 5 stars
'Excellent and very accurate' - 5 stars
'I could not put it down' - 5 stars
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Thomas Paine Kydd. Arrr, matey, there's a name to hang a man for sure. In this delightful first installment in a new series in the tradition of Patrick O'Brian, Kydd is a bright lad pressed into the service of his majesty (Farmer George, the Madness himself) on the ship-of-the-line Duke William. It's 1793, and England is on the brink of war with the French. In what seems almost a day-by-day account, we follow Kydd from his nightmarish introduction to naval life to his promotion to ordinary seaman. Befriended first by Joe Bowyer, a simple, honest sailor who teaches him the ropes, Kydd later makes the acquaintance of Nicholas Renzi, a cultivated-looking man with a secret. Camaraderie, grog and pride in their work is all the sailors have to ease the hardship of life on board ship. It's a rough life, and Stockwin skillfully makes readers share the pain and tedium of it, but this is more than a historical adventure tale: it is the story of the education of a young man. Stockwin, who joined the Royal Navy at 15 and retired a lieutenant commander, knows his ships and his men as well as his historical era. Kydd, a strong, ordinary sort with a mind of his own, is a convincing character and so are his shipmates. The jargon comes thick and fast, so much so that the book would have benefited from a glossary a ship's diagram would have come in handy, too. But the skim of the story and the depth of the characterizations will ease readers past any obscure terms.
