We Didn't Mean to Go to Sea (Swallows and Amazons) - Softcover

Ransome, Arthur

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1567924875 ISBN 13: 9781567924879

Publisher: David R. Godine, Publisher, 2014

Synopsis

For anyone who loves sailing and adventure, Arthur Ransome's classic Swallows and Amazons series stands alone. Originally published in the UK over a half century ago, these books are still eagerly read by children, despite their length and their decidedly British protagonists. We attribute their success to two facts: first, Ransome is a great storyteller and, second, he clearly writes from first-hand experience. Independence and initiative are qualities any child can understand and every volume in this collection celebrates these virtues.

In this seventh adventure (following Pigeon Post, winner of the Carnegie Medal), the Walker family has come to Harwich to wait for Commander Walker's return. As usual, the children can't stay away from boats, and this time they meet young Jim Brading, skipper of the well-found sloop Goblin. But fun turns to high drama when the anchor drags, and the four young sailors find themselves drifting out to sea sweeping across to Holland in the midst of a full gale! As in all of Ransome's books, the emphasis is on self-reliance, courage, and resourcefulness. We Didn't Mean to Go to Sea is a story to warm any mariner's heart. Full of nautical lore and adventure, it will appeal to young armchair sailors and seasoned sailors alike.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

“He makes a tale of adventure a handbook to adventure.” – Observer

“There is plenty of excitement, a little danger, a quality of thinking, planning and fun which is delightful and stimulating.” – TLS

About the Author:

ARTHUR RANSOME was born in Leeds in 1884. He had an adventurous life -- as a baby he was carried by his father to the top of the Old Man of Coniston, a peak that is 2,276 ft high! He went to Russia in 1913 to study folklore and in 1914, at the start of World War I he became a foreign correspondent for the "Daily News." In 1917 when the Russian Revolution began he became a journalist and was a special correspondent of the "Guardian." He played chess with Lenin and married Trotsky's personal secretary, Evgenia Petrovna Shelepina. On his return to England, he bought a cottage near Windermere in the Lake District and began writing children's stories. He published the first of his children's classics, the twelve Swallows and Amazons books, in 1930. In 1936 he won the first ever Carnegie Medal for his book, "Pigeon Post." He died in 1967.

About this edition

• Publisher: David R. Godine, Publisher
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 1567924875
• ISBN 13: 9781567924879
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 333