Every issue of WindCheck includes a look at a new book about sailing (or perhaps the reissue of a maritime classic) and occasionally gives a listen to the music of the sea.
An extensively revised eighth edition of a time-tested reference, Tom Cunliffe’s The Complete Yachtmaster is an essential read for anyone contemplating making a coastal or offshore passage. Taking into account new developments in marine electronics and sail handling systems, it has information about using the newest chartplotters and integrated systems and navigating with apps, tablets and smartphones.
Fifteen-year-old Luke Constance, well-read, worldly and wise beyond his years, tells the story. One day in 1858, while he’s asleep aboard his grandfather’s schooner in Marblehead, Massachusetts, a pair of thieves steal the ship and head out to sea.
Author Sam Jefferson, one of the foremost authorities on clipper ships, tells the story of how these magnificent vessels shaped worldwide commerce and culture.
With Long Island Sound literally in their backyards, affluent families including the Astors, Morgans, Sloans, Roosevelts and Vanderbilts commissioned fast, luxurious yachts that they used for everything from commuting to the city to racing and voyaging.
The first of these manuals, Composition Tips, covers the fundaments of successful sailing photography including keeping your horizon level, framing your subject with the rule of thirds, shooting from different angles, and editing your images. There’s also a “Shot Busters” section comprising tips on avoiding things that can ruin a shot, and every page is illustrated with examples of both good and not-so-good photos.
Published in partnership with the Maine Maritime Museum, Live Yankees is a comprehensively researched and marvelously written account of a family dynasty that fueled the rise of the American sailing merchant fleet.
Victura
The Kennedys, a Sailboat, and the Sea
By James W. Graham
Published by ForeEdge/University Press of New England 272 pages hardcover $29.95 (ebook $22.95)
American businessman Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. was an avid sailor, and in 1932 he purchased a 25-foot gaff-rigged sloop to enjoy on the waters of Nantucket Sound with his wife Rose and their nine children.
The Wianno Senior Story
A Century on Nantucket Sound
By Stan Grayson
Riding the Wild Ocean
The Circumnavigation of Cape Cod in a 18-Foot Sloop, and Other Adventures By Paul S. Krantz, Jr.
The words within, a collection the author’s adventures on waters from coastal New England to the Dry Tortugas, all in boats under 20 feet in length, deliver on the promise.
Book Review: Sea Trials – A Lone Sailor’s Race Toward Home By Peter J. Bourke
After his wife’s sudden death, Peter Bourke realized he needed something more than parenting and a career to restore balance in his life. Although he did not know how to sail – and despite the fact that his friends thought he was crazy – he bought his first sailboat and embarked on a series of offshore solo voyages that included the Bermuda One-Two.
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