Publication
Amsterdam Uitgeverij Pluim 2020
ISBN
9789492928894
Language
Collections
Description
" Zeeangst is het logboek van een schipper, die met zijn vriendin en hun poes een zeiltocht maakt langs de Engelse zuidkust en het eiland Wight, en tevens een scheepsjournaal van een schrijver die landinwaarts een waterglas whisky ledigt bij het graf van Malcolm Lowry en een saluut brengt aan Virginia Woolf. Zeeangst is een boek om in te verdrinken".--Back cover."Sea Fear is the log of a skipper who sails with his girlfriend and their cat along the English south coast and the Isle of Wight. It is also a ships log of a writer who empties a water glass of whiskey at the grave of Malcolm Lowry and gives a salute to Virginia Woolf. Sea Fear is a book to dive in ".--Translated from back cover.
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User reviews
LibraryThing member edwinbcn
Zeeangst by the Dutch author L. H. Wiener is a log book, really. A diary of a voyage along the west coast of the Netherlands, the south coast of the island of Britain, and the Isle of Whight. It is both very good, and still slightly disappointing. By this I mean, it could easily have become a much
In the opening sections, the author describes how, as a 14-year-old boy, he nearly drowned, while out at sea. Following the accident, they also had to wait long for rescue, so the whole experience saddled him up with a lifelong fear of the sea. Paradoxically, sailing hasd become (or remained) the passion of his life. In the first sections of the book the author also describes how he acquaired the ship and named it Argos. With his wife on board, and their cat, they then set sail on this voyage.
Early in his career, Wiener was a teacher of English at a high school. Thus, his interest and extensive knowledge of English literature and his love for the UK are easily understood. References to English and American writers appear aplenty throughout the book.
The book has a somewhat mundane character as it describes mooring in various harbours and the usual banter with other people on the water. The episode about bringing the cat into the UK is hilarious, although fear rather than sarcasm is the overall emotion in this passage. I think the book includes too much specialist terminology about sailing and parts of the ship, and although a glossary is included this distracts from the rest of the text which is simple and straightforward.
L. H. Wiener is a writer who appeared rather unsuccesful for a long time, and only recently has broken through to a wider readership, no doubt through the years of persistence.
In the context of Dutch literature, Zeeangst is definitely an innovation of the genre, as for a nation whose history is so closely linked with the sea, there are very few travelogues in the form of descriptions of voyages, especially in modern times. However, in recent years there is a tremendous growth in the interest of sail boats, particularly with restored old ship, and many historical cities organize fleet shows, inviting tall ships and historical vessels to visit their harbours.
Zeeangst is a welcome book for readers who are interested in sailing and sail boats.
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better book.In the opening sections, the author describes how, as a 14-year-old boy, he nearly drowned, while out at sea. Following the accident, they also had to wait long for rescue, so the whole experience saddled him up with a lifelong fear of the sea. Paradoxically, sailing hasd become (or remained) the passion of his life. In the first sections of the book the author also describes how he acquaired the ship and named it Argos. With his wife on board, and their cat, they then set sail on this voyage.
Early in his career, Wiener was a teacher of English at a high school. Thus, his interest and extensive knowledge of English literature and his love for the UK are easily understood. References to English and American writers appear aplenty throughout the book.
The book has a somewhat mundane character as it describes mooring in various harbours and the usual banter with other people on the water. The episode about bringing the cat into the UK is hilarious, although fear rather than sarcasm is the overall emotion in this passage. I think the book includes too much specialist terminology about sailing and parts of the ship, and although a glossary is included this distracts from the rest of the text which is simple and straightforward.
L. H. Wiener is a writer who appeared rather unsuccesful for a long time, and only recently has broken through to a wider readership, no doubt through the years of persistence.
In the context of Dutch literature, Zeeangst is definitely an innovation of the genre, as for a nation whose history is so closely linked with the sea, there are very few travelogues in the form of descriptions of voyages, especially in modern times. However, in recent years there is a tremendous growth in the interest of sail boats, particularly with restored old ship, and many historical cities organize fleet shows, inviting tall ships and historical vessels to visit their harbours.
Zeeangst is a welcome book for readers who are interested in sailing and sail boats.
Show Less