Timeless tips and salty stories
Bosun's Bag, by Tom Cunliffe
Bosun's Bag is an essential guide for sailors. The book offers a collection of age-old seafaring wisdom and practical tips on maintenance, navigation, sails, rigging, and seamanship, as well as invaluable advice on diverse topics, from avoiding seized bolts to managing a large mainsail and handling an offset propeller. Enhanced with the author’s engaging sea tales and complemented by Martyn Mackrill's stunning paintings, the book captures the essence of traditional sailing.
Bosun's Bag
By Tom Cunliffe
Adlard Coles, £25
ISBN: 978 13994 11899
Buy this book in the Nautilus Bookshop
While you're there, why not browse the rest of the titles in our unique maritime bookshop, which sells all the books reviewed on these pages.
Buy nowMore Books
The precarious path from piracy to prosperity
The Resurrected Pirate by Craig S ChapmanThe precarious path from piracy to prosperity
Carving out a career
Ships' Figureheads: Famous Carving FamiliesThe decoration of ships with figureheads was a way to present the might of military and mercantile power for centuries. These days, the skills needed to make these sculptures are kept alive by experts such as Andrew Peters, who has worked on restoration projects such as the Cutty Sark tea clipper.
Knotty problems solved
The Knot Bible: The Complete Guide to Knots And Their Uses by Nic ComptonKnot-tying is a vital competency skill for seafarers, and this expanded edition of The Knot Bible by Nic Compton offers guidance on over 200 knots and their practical uses.
Why it's nice to splice
Splicing modern ropes, 2nd edition: a practical handbook by Jan-Willem PolmanSplicing rope is as an essential skill for seafarers as tying a knot, but some skills are disappearing. This definitive guide on why splicing gets more from your rope is a great stocking filler for all boaters, whether recreational or commercial.