by Tom McCarthy
First published 2021
This anthology brings together twenty-eight maritime adventures spanning centuries of seafaring drama. The collection moves from gentle coastal exploration with Erskine Childers in "An Introduction to Informality" to the horrific shark attacks that followed the sinking of the Indianapolis in Raymond B. Lech's account. Readers witness Ernest Shackleton and his crew battle Antarctic ice in "Escape from the Ice," experiencing their extraordinary survival against impossible odds. Each story uses the ocean as its stage, whether for quiet moments of discovery or life-and-death struggles against nature's fury. The sea becomes both adversary and setting, testing characters who must find courage, endurance, and ingenuity to survive. These tales span the full emotional range from wonder to terror, offering vicarious thrills that only maritime adventure can deliver.
Genres: historical-fiction, adventure, non-fiction
Vibes: emotional, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: against-all-odds, man-vs-nature
Setting: Antarctica, Indianapolis
Period: Centuries, 20th-century
526 pages · Hardcover · Lyons Press