Tagged: Aubrey/Maturin series
If you’re participating in the Aubrey-Maturin Chapter-a-Week 4 Year Read-along Schedule, then you have just reached the end of The Mauritius Command, the fourth book in the Aubrey-Maturin series. With the end of book four we are now one fifth of the way through the series. Jack Aubrey is in the prime of his naval career, and his family is growing. Dr. Maturin’s career in espionage is bearing great fruit for the Crown, but his personal life is not what he would hope. What did you think of The...
If you’re participating in the Aubrey-Maturin Chapter-a-Week 4 Year Read-along Schedule, then you have just reached the end of HMS Surprise, the third book in the Aubrey-Maturin series. By this third book, we are well into the story of Jack and Stephen and all the other established characters. Battles, duels, heartbreaks, HMS Surprise has some of the most memorable scenes in the entire series. This post is for you to post your feedback about the book and the series. What did you think of HMS Surprise? Leave your thoughts,...
If you’re participating in the Aubrey-Maturin Chapter-a-Week 4 Year Read-along Schedule, then you have just reached the end of Post Captain by reading a chapter a week for the last fourteen weeks. Combined with our twelve-week reading of Master and Commander, we are exactly half way through the first year of our four year odyssey through the Aubrey-Maturin books. Congratulations! As much as I enjoy Master and Commander, I feel like Post Captain is the real beginning to the series. Because Master and Commander is mostly a naval...
If you have been following the Aubrey-Maturin Chapter-a-Week 4 Year Read-along Schedule, then you have just reached the end of Master and Commander by reading a chapter a week for the last twelve weeks. Congratulations! While I haven’t been able to post weekly as I had planned, I do want to mark the end of the first book of our four-year voyage. Feel free to leave your thoughts, reactions, and questions about Master and Commander in the comments section below. And be sure to check out Brona’s amazing...
Welcome to week three of the Aubrey/Maturin Chapter-a-Week 4 Year Read-along Odyssey. This post gives you an opportunity to share your thoughts, quotes, and questions about chapter three of Master and Commander. Quote of the Week “He looked over those miles of sea to windward — perfectly clear. Not a sail, not the slightest break on the tight light of the horizon. The topgallant sail above him was suddenly golden: then two points on the larboard bow, in the mounting blaze of light, the sun thrust up its...
Welcome to week two of the Aubrey/Maturin Chapter-a-Week 4 Year Read-along Odyssey. This post gives you an opportunity to share your thoughts, quotes, and questions about chapter two of Master and Commander. Quote of the Week “This was Jack’s first direct, fully responsible acquaintance with book-keeping, and he did not much relish it.” This quote reminded me of when I first became principal and had to start working on the school budget. Where are Jack and Stephen this week? Jack and Stephen are still in Port Mahon as Jack...
Welcome to the first of what I hope will be weekly updates for the Aubrey/Maturin Chapter-a-Week 4 Year Read-along Odyssey. The plan is to make a very brief post each Sunday or Monday to give readers a place to post their thoughts, questions, or reactions to the chapter just finished. If you’ve read ahead or read the series before, please refrain from any spoilers. Each week I hope to post a quote from the chapter, a description of the current setting, and maybe even a nautical or historical...
In just a few days the Aubrey/Maturin Chapter-a-Week 4 Year Read-along Odyssey begins. This post is an introduction mostly for those who are unfamiliar with the series or with books set in the Age of Sail. Now, I am about as far from an expert on this series as you can find, but I have read it a few times, so I’ll share a few things that I think might be helpful for a new reader. If you have prior experience with the books I invite you to...
This is the official sign-up post for the Aubrey/Maturin Chapter-a-Week 4 Year Read-along Odyssey. Yes, you read that right. This is a four year challenge to read what some call the greatest historical fiction series ever written, the Jack Aubrey/Stephen Maturin nautical series by Patrick O’Brian. Join me in a long, slow read of this masterful account of life at sea (and on land) during the Napoleonic era. This reading odyssey will require a heart of oak but the journey will be well worth the effort. Why These...
The amazing videos and links below come from one of my favorite Facebook groups. If you’re a fellow Patrick O’Brian fan and you’re not a member of the Aubrey-Maturin Appreciation Society on Facebook, you’re missing out on good fellowship, discussion, and amazing shared content. The group is for those of us who have read most or all of the Aubrey/Maturin books. From the group’s description: From Master & Commander through to the 21st incomplete instalment, this group is for those who have shared in the long ocean voyages,...
The following interview of author Patrick O’Brian showed up in my Facebook feed the other day and it’s a real gem. O’Brian was interviewed for almost an hour in 1995 at the Mariner’s Museum in Newport, VA. First he answers questions from the museum’s president and CEO, John Hightower, then he takes questions from the audience for about thirty minutes. The audio is a bit rough, but the content is worth it. And if you love the Aubrey/Maturin book series as much as I do, be sure to...
One of my favorite books is actually an entire series–the Aubrey/Maturin series by Patrick O’Brian. You may have seen the movie based on the books, Master and Commander, starring Russell Crowe. The series is about the exploits of Captain Jack Aubrey and his best friend Dr. Stephen Maturin. They sail on many ships in the series, but the ship that is dearest to them is the HMS Surprise. It was a real treat for me to discover that the HMS Surprise that was used in the movie is...
