Bibliography
Monsarrat, Nicholas. 1951. The Cruel Sea. Harmondsworth (England): Penguin Books Ltd.
The reader is treated to a fictional depiction of an English corvette during World War II. It begins with the ship still in the yard with it’s first captain, Lieutenant-Commander George Ericson, arriving. Monsarrat introduces the crew as members come and go. The interactions, personal circumstances and levels of sea-going experience all add to the drama as they slowly meld into a successful ship’s company. The corvette was a sort of small escort vessel designed to protect merchant convoys from German U-boats. They were hastily constructed with no air-conditioning and limited heating. Crew accommodations were spartan and armament limited.
The name of the specific ship from the story was the HMS Compass Rose. Along the way, the crew and ship engage a number of U-boats and sink several. They also conduct a number of rescue operations where the Germans are successful in sinking ships leaving many sailors in the water. All the action takes place in the Atlantic theater. In the end, Compass Rose is lost to a German torpedo. Not all the crew survive, and some survivors suffer what today would be called PTSD.
The book is a good mix between personal conflict, team building, high-stakes warfare, and character retrospection. There was at least one full-length motion picture based on the book.
Monsarrat, Nicholas. 1951. The Cruel Sea. Harmondsworth (England): Penguin Books Ltd.
The reader is treated to a fictional depiction of an English corvette during World War II. It begins with the ship still in the yard with it’s first captain, Lieutenant-Commander George Ericson, arriving. Monsarrat introduces the crew as members come and go. The interactions, personal circumstances and levels of sea-going experience all add to the drama as they slowly meld into a successful ship’s company. The corvette was a sort of small escort vessel designed to protect merchant convoys from German U-boats. They were hastily constructed with no air-conditioning and limited heating. Crew accommodations were spartan and armament limited.
The name of the specific ship from the story was the HMS Compass Rose. Along the way, the crew and ship engage a number of U-boats and sink several. They also conduct a number of rescue operations where the Germans are successful in sinking ships leaving many sailors in the water. All the action takes place in the Atlantic theater. In the end, Compass Rose is lost to a German torpedo. Not all the crew survive, and some survivors suffer what today would be called PTSD.
The book is a good mix between personal conflict, team building, high-stakes warfare, and character retrospection. There was at least one full-length motion picture based on the book.
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