This thread is for anyone who, like myself, is a fan of sea stories - fact or fiction. I have the complete set of C.S. Forester's Horatio Hornblower novels; I've been a fan since the late 70's when I first discovered them. As a result, I've developed an interest in the British Navy during the Napoleonic Wars, as well as sailing ships in general. To that end, I've been collecting books on the subject. I've also got the complete set of DVDs of the Hornblower movies that the A&E cable network ran a few years ago. I also have a DVD of "Master and Commander; The Far Side of the World" - excellent movie there! - not to mention the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies (although I think I only have the first two on disc).
So anybody out there wants to come on board and spin a few yarns, you're more than welcome to, mates. Just leave space on the quarterdeck for the captain to take his daily walk, and don't drink all the rum.
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06-03-2008, 04:05 AM #1Moderator Venerated Elder
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Sea Stories - Hornblower, Jack Aubrey, Etc.
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06-03-2008, 10:45 AM #2Registered User Exalted Member
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The BBC Hornblower series was superb, I'm hoping that they'll do the later stories in the series now that the cast members are a bit older.
Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto - “You cannot invade the mainland United States. There would be a rifle behind each blade of grass.”
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06-04-2008, 01:06 AM #3Registered User Honored Elder
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I've read all of Patrick O'Brian's books, and I thought they were really good. (After going through all 20 of them, though, the details start to run together.
) Heck, I even put a shout-out to the series in OLS in the form of Dr. Maturin. 
I never really got into the Hornblower series, mostly because I was reading O'Brian at the same time I discovered the existence of Horatio.Carpe Navi: Because you never know when you'll get to go boating at government expense again.
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06-04-2008, 02:51 AM #4Moderator Venerated Elder
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I started reading the first O'Brian book, Master and Commander, but I bogged down midway through it because A) they still hadn't put to sea yet, and B) the way it's written, I wasn't sure whether a given bit of dialogue was what a character was thinking, or saying. It was a bit confusing, so I put the book aside for a while.
I still want to give the series a fair shake, having seen the film starring Russell Crowe (which I greatly enjoyed); but I have to wonder: Do the Aubrey books get better as they progress? Or am I missing something by not having finished the first one?
I started reading the Hornblower books back in the 70's because I read that Gene Roddenberry, who created Star Trek, was partly inspired by Forester's novels. So I began reading them out of curiosity, and I liked what I found - good, solid sea stories populated by believable characters. Even after 30 years, the novels still hold up; I enjoy rereading them today. If you were to look at my set of Hornblower books, you'd notice how their covers are Scotch-taped together. I've read them so much, they've started to fall apart. 'Chutes, I highly recommend Hornblower. Now that you've read the Aubrey books, look into Forester's series. I promise you, you won't be disappointed.
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06-05-2008, 06:41 PM #5Administrator Honored Elder
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I never read either series, but I greatly enjoyed the Russell Crowe movie as well as the movies with Ioan Gryffudd as Hornblower.
"Say the Word"
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06-05-2008, 09:18 PM #6Registered User Exalted Member
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The Hornblower miiseries is available on DVD, as a set.
Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto - “You cannot invade the mainland United States. There would be a rifle behind each blade of grass.”
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06-06-2008, 02:15 AM #7Super Moderator Venerated Elder
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You absolutely should give Aubrey another go, TWD. I've gone through O'Brien's series twice, and it's well worth the trip.
The ongoing Dewey Lambdin series starring Captain Alan Lewrie is another series well worth checking out. The King's Coat is the first one.
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06-06-2008, 03:39 AM #8Moderator Venerated Elder
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I take it Dewey Lambdin is the series' author?
Originally Posted by campy
Thanks for the recommendation, campy. I'll look into it.
As for that Aubrey book, well, I'll have to find where I put it. I hope I didn't put it in a box that I took to my storage cubicle....
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06-06-2008, 10:51 AM #9Super Moderator Venerated Elder
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Yes, Lambdin is the author and Lewrie is the character. Sorry if I wasn't clear the first time. Originally Posted by TransWarpDrive
I take it Dewey Lambdin is the series' author? Originally Posted by campy
Thanks for the recommendation, campy. I'll look into it.
As for that Aubrey book, well, I'll have to find where I put it. I hope I didn't put it in a box that I took to my storage cubicle....
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07-02-2008, 04:54 AM #10Moderator Venerated Elder
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I'm currently rereading some of my favorite Hornblower novels. Over the weekend, I finished "Ship of the Line", and now I'm reading "Flying Colors." Like I said earlier: even after 30 years, Forester's novels still hold my interest. I enjoy coming back to them again and again - especially now that I have some more reference books that give me a clearer picture of what life was like in the Royal Navy during that period.
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