COMPASS
by Alan Gurney

This is more like a Patrick O'Brien novel than a history book. Compass chronicles the mis-adventures of those who attempted to perfect the instrumentÑso precious to sixteenth seamen that, by law, any man found tampering with it had his hand pinned to the mast with a dagger. In twenty-one short chapters, the author covers a thousand years of events, people and ships. The author's personal passion for the sea and its stories is clear throughout. He brings to life the instrument Victor Hugo called "the soul of the ship". Part history, part adventure, this compelling tribute to human ingenuityÑand the mysteries of the seaÑwill keep the pages turning long after dark. HC, 2004, 320 pages. SW 1 lb.