Status
Available
Call number
Call number
PB Ran
Local notes
PB Ran
Collection
Genres
Publication
Random House UK (1993), Edition: New edition, 416 pages
Description
While on vacation in East Anglia, four children, whose previous sailing experience is limited to dinghies, accidentally drift out to the North Sea after the rising tide causes their cutter to drag anchor.
Subjects
Awards
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1937
Physical description
416 p.; 7.01 inches
User reviews
LibraryThing member thorold
This is a classic Swallows and Amazons adventure. Like its successor Secret Water, it starts off with the Swallows staying near the Harwich naval base in anticipation of a sailing holiday when their father gets back from service in China. Of course his return is delayed, and the Swallows (on the
As usual with Ransome, there's a good mix of sailing technicalities and adventure: in this case there is no need for the children to involve their imagination in inventing pirates and explorers. The risks they are facing are perfectly real, and things get quite scary enough without any help from fantasy. Boat-minded readers will be interested by the change from dinghies to a small sea-going yacht; others will enjoy the glimpses of life on the other side of the North Sea. As always, the illustrations are an essential part of the story, and take you straight back into the world of the 1930s. Parents might find the plot a teensy bit irresponsible, while modern children might find the Swallows a bit too calm and competent, but there's not much to criticise, really.
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strength of their seamanlike knot-tying skills) make friends with a young man who has a yacht . Through a series of accidents they end up alone on the boat and drifting into the North Sea...As usual with Ransome, there's a good mix of sailing technicalities and adventure: in this case there is no need for the children to involve their imagination in inventing pirates and explorers. The risks they are facing are perfectly real, and things get quite scary enough without any help from fantasy. Boat-minded readers will be interested by the change from dinghies to a small sea-going yacht; others will enjoy the glimpses of life on the other side of the North Sea. As always, the illustrations are an essential part of the story, and take you straight back into the world of the 1930s. Parents might find the plot a teensy bit irresponsible, while modern children might find the Swallows a bit too calm and competent, but there's not much to criticise, really.
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LibraryThing member Figgles
This book contains the best description of what it's like to be afraid, at sea, in a small boat in bad weather. The most "real" of all the Swallows and Amazons books tells the story of how the Swallows are swept out to sea in someone else's boat in a fog and must rely on themselves to keep the boat
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and their lives safe. I first read this in 1969 and was thrilled by the adventure. I've come back to it nearly every year since during which time I have gone from knowing far less about sailing than the Swallows to knowing far more - and thus appreciating Arthur Ransome's technical knowledge as well as his skill as a storyteller. It's a wonderful book, a dramatic story, and the next best thing to the experience of being at sea yourself - though you don't have to be a sailor to enjoy it. Show Less
LibraryThing member Glico
This is the unlikely story of four children alone on a sailing boat that is swept out to sea during a night of fog and storm, and how they navigated it safely to Holland.
I like Susan. The eldest girl rather motherly in outlook - always responsible for cooking, cleaning and looking after the other
I like Susan. The eldest girl rather motherly in outlook - always responsible for cooking, cleaning and looking after the other
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children. Show Less
LibraryThing member jjmcgaffey
My favorite of the Swallows and Amazons books. Chance, and their ability as sailors, puts them aboard a small yacht; an assortment of bad luck sends the yacht out to sea with only the four children (just the Swallows, no Amazons this time) aboard. The adventure is all real here, and they meet the
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crises beautifully. They run into real problems that they can't solve, and figure out ways past them - the seasickness that limits their choices, and the alternative they come up with is good. Then one bit of sheer coincidence and seriously good luck, and all their problems are over - except explaining to their mother when they get home! Poor Jim. But again, this is my favorite book, because the adventure is real. No games and stories and pretending - they come up against reality and find they can handle it - not easily, not perfectly, but well enough to manage. I love it. Show Less
LibraryThing member aleader
We Didn't Mean to go to Sea is in the Swallows and Amazons series. A group of children who love sailing are taken aboard a boat by a friend of the family. The children are expert sailors. When the friend is injured while ashore and in the hospital, the sailboat is pushed out to sea by a storm with
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the children on it. They have to sail through the night in the fog. By morning they found they have sailed to Holland. The book contains a lot of information about sailing as well as a sense of adventure. Show Less
LibraryThing member d.r.halliwell
When I first read this book as a child, this was my least favourite of the Swallows and Amazons books. Now, it is one of my favourites. The Walker children face real challenges and real peril. What most people notice is John's resource added to his familiar sense of responsibility. But what I
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noticed on re-reading was how important Susan was to their survival, on deck with John throughout most of the journey, taking the burden while John was exhausted, and looking after the rest of the crew. Show Less
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Pages
416