My Friend The Sea

Growing Up and Travelling the World by Sea

by Douglas Model

This is a story about the author growing up at sea, set against the ever present background of ships and the beauty of the oceans, a tale of ambition, adversity and dealing with prejudice.

Ten years of adventure starting with two years on the Spartan training ship HMS Worcester, and eight years travelling the world on ships of the Shaw Savill Line, visiting far off lands, and meeting all manner of people, including eccentric distant relatives in Australia, a drunken captain, another who was a tyrant, and primitive natives in Fiji, plus shipboard romances, a mutiny, and a growing need for the author to change the way he lives.

This is not the usual memoirs of the post war days of the Merchant Navy. It is much more than that. The author explains with complete honesty, his personal and professional development. He details in particular, his tough days on HMS Worcester and the strict regime of this method of training that is very much in the past. He talks about the good and the bad experiences of being an officer in those days.

This is a very well written book and I would very highly recommend it to our readers.