Items related to A Fine Boy for Killing
Under sealed orders for a long, arduous voyage, Captain Daniel Swift dispenses shipboard law with an iron fist to forge an efficient crew from a ragged group of unwilling, inexperienced "volunteers."
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About the Author:
Jan Needle, a native of Portsmouth, England, has had a lifelong interest in naval history. He is the author of four acclaimed novels under the pseudonym Frank Kippax, and also has a highly successful career as a TV scriptwriter and, under his own name, as a writer of award-winning children's fiction.
From Publishers Weekly:
A promising first installment in a series of historical sea adventures by British writer Needle introduces readers to 14-year-old officer William Bentley and life aboard the ill-fated frigate Welfare during the Napoleonic Wars. The ship is helmed by Daniel Swift, a notoriously ruthless captain who instructs young BentleyDhis nephew and favoriteDin the best ways to fill the ship's complement of sailors. Forced pressing into service is illegal, but in an attempt to please his uncle, Bentley adds two crewmen through trickery and kidnapping; a young farm boy named Thomas Fox and a smuggler named Jesse Broad. Broad and Fox form a relationship that parallels Swift and Bentley's as Broad assumes a quiet role of leadership among the increasingly unhappy crew. The abusive atmosphere aboard the Welfare is thick and immediate, as is the struggle for power over the ship. Swift exerts his power strategically and sadistically, while Bentley, whose youth makes his attempts at discipline ineffectual, tries to justify his uncle's increasingly cruel actions. Floggings occur daily for the slightest offenses, and living quarters are squalid. When the inevitable mutiny occurs, it is a spontaneous eruption, liberating the crew from royal command but leaving them vulnerable to anarchic elements within their ranks. Bentley, the only officer left on board, bears witness to the mutiny's aftermath, completing a personal transformation that makes the book a bildungsroman as well as a sea story. Such tales can easily fall prey to convention, but in Needle's hands the Welfare comes alive with rich, compelling characters and vivid imagery. There are no white knights here and no one-dimensional villains; as much as one hates Swift, he is a refreshingly unpredictable character in an invigorating story. (Oct.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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- PublisherAndre Deutsch
- Publication date1979
- ISBN 10 0233971068
- ISBN 13 9780233971063
- BindingHardcover
- Edition number1
- Number of pages256
- Rating
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A Fine Boy for Killing
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Book Description Hard Cover. Condition: Near Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Near Fine. First Edition. ----------hardcover, with dust jacket. The book, in slate blue cloth with silver lettering and design to the spine, has very modest shelfwear, and is near fine. The attractive wraparound jacket by an uncredited artist is price-clipped, has very minor wear to some edges, and is almost near fine. Seller Inventory # 008091
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A Fine Boy For Killing
Published by
Andre Deutsch
(1979)
ISBN 10: 0233971068
ISBN 13: 9780233971063
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First Edition
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Book Description Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. First edition. ISBN 0233971068. Hardback. First Printing. Very good condition book in a Very good condition dustjacket. Tight sound unmarked copy in dustjacket. Seller Inventory # 54709
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A Fine Boy For Killing
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Book Description Hardcover. Condition: Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Fine. First Edition. This is a Fine Copy of this Book in a Fine Dust-Jacket.Not price clipped,with no previous inscriptions present.Their are no chips or tears to the d/j,a lovely clean copy internally with no foxing or page edge tanning,with the wrapper now well protected in a cover sleeve.8vo 256pp,scarce in this condition First Edition. Seller Inventory # 11476
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Book Description Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Fair. H/B blue cloth bds, VG, unclipped d/w, with some edgewear, closed tear at front corner and label residue on spine, front fly leaf taped neatly to pastedown, ex-school lib. with usual markings, contents fine and tight. 'In the great days of Nelson, acts of tremendous courage and heroism were commonplace on ships of the British Navy. So were acts of almost unbelievable bestiality and ferocious cruelty. The story is seen through the eyes of three people - two boys and and man - who become inextricably bound together by a series of dreadful events.'. Seller Inventory # 3086
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A Fine Boy for Killing
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Book Description First edition. Hardback. Book and dust jacket are in Fine condition. Jacket fitted with a new removable clear cover. Securely packaged. Seller Inventory # 35954
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A FINE BOY FOR KILLING.
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(1979)
ISBN 10: 0233971068
ISBN 13: 9780233971063
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Book Description Hardback. Condition: VERY GOOD. 1979. Andre Deutsch. First. Book-VG. DJ-VG, protective covered, edgewear, mildly rubbed. 8.25x5.25. 256pp. Seller Inventory # 359182
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