The Captain and the Corinthians

The Book Guild, 1998; 310pp;

Those who dream of sailing the high seas in a brigantine before the trade winds with white billowing sails will find The Captain and the Corinthians rather less romantic. It is an account of a voyage from San Diego to Trinidad via the Panama Canal and deals with the harsh realities of life aboard, not in the last century, but in 1969. The author is the captain’s wife and co-owner. It deals with the provisions, cash flow, broken loos, broken down freezers not to mention the crew. It soon becomes apparent that you cannot run a 121 foot ship in the same way as a 35foot yacht with a crew hell-bent on a yachting holiday. The photographs are of poor quality and there is no chart of the voyage. To have an atlas to hand as they slowly progress through the Caribbean is desirable. Being written from the viewpoint of the captain’s wife may make this of particular interest but not to those concerned to know more about the workings of a brigantine. - LL