Sea StoriesTalking Books
The titles in this booklist are just a selection of the titles available for loan from the RNIB National Library Talking Book Service.
Don’t forget you are allowed to have up to 6 books on loan. When you return a title, you will then receive another one.
If you would like to read any of these titles then please contact the Customer Services Team on 0303 123 9999 or email
If you would like further information, or help in selecting titles to read, then please contact the Reader Services Team on 01733 37 53 33 or email
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PE2 6WS
The Ghost ship: stories of the phantom Flying Dutchman. 1985. Read by Christopher Scott, 8 hours 15 minutes. TB 6590.
The Flying Dutchman, a ghostly ship doomed to wander the oceans with its accursed captain and crew, has been seen by generations of seamen and has excited the imagination of some of the finest writers of both maritime and supernatural stories. Some of the best are brought together in this fascinating collection. TB 6590.
The Oxford book of sea stories. 1994. Read by various narrators, 19 hours 51 minutes. TB 10722.
Many great writers have given their accounts of life at sea and the adventures to be had there, and this wide ranging collection of stories is absorbing reading for anyone with an interest in the sea and its stories. Tony Tanner has sought out less well-known but highly atmospheric tales from British and American authors, including the last three chapters of Melville's "Moby Dick", and two stories from the master of sea fiction, Joseph Conrad. TB 10722.
Archibald, Malcolm
Whales for the wizard. 2005. Read by Robbie MacNab, 9 hours 51 minutes. TB 14645.
Returning to Dundee after years in the army, Robert Douglas finds employment with George Gilbridge, a whaling-ship owner and business man, but falls foul of the sinister John Wyllie, Douglas awakes on board the steam-whaler Redgauntlet, bound for the Arctic, to realise that many of his companions believe the ship is haunted and do not expect to return. The voyage sees the unravelling of a year-old mystery as Douglas clashes with, then befriends 'bully' Houston, the ship's mate, and together they locate a sister ship that was believed lost in the ice. TB 14645.
Bainbridge, Beryl
Every man for himself. 1996. Read by Matthew Sharp, 6 hours 38 minutes. TB 11137.
Four days after the Titanic left Southampton, she struck an iceberg and sank. This book recaptures those four crucial days. The story is told by Morgan, nephew of the owner of the shipping line. Was the Titanic travelling too fast? Why was she given a certificate of seaworthiness when there was a fire blazing in No. 10 bunker? And why did the mysterious Scurra, long before the tragedy, remark that it was 'every man for himself'? TB 11137.
Bucheim, Lothar-Gunther
The boat: one of the best novels ever written about war. 1999. Read by Gordon Dulieu, 20 hours 53 minutes. TB 12385.
This is the story of a German U-boat, her commander and crew, as they embark upon yet another hazardous patrol in the Battle of the Atlantic. Contains passages of a sexual nature. TB 12385.
Callison, Brian
A ship is dying. 1976. Read by George Hagan, 7 hours 41 minutes. TB 9274.
The second mate on the bridge of MV Lycomedes caught a first glimpse of a foam-shrouded shape half a mile ahead. Fourteen minutes later the ship plunged beneath the icy waters of the North Sea. Callison vividly portrays these minutes of catastrophe, so that the reader lives through every instant as Lycomedes is torn to pieces beneath his feet. TB 9274.
Cornwell, Bernard
Sea lord. 1989. Read by Stephen Thorne, 10 hours 43 minutes. TB 7932.
John Rossendale is a sea-gypsy, wandering the oceans in the 38-foot cutter, "Sunflower". He is also the 28th Earl of Stowey, but titles don't mean much at sea. Four years ago he turned his back on England, swearing never to go home again. Now, out of sense of duty, he returns to British waters. At his mother's funeral, he finds his family hostile, his boat under violent attack and his life in danger. Contains strong language. TB 7932.
Cornwell, Bernard
Wildtrack. 1988. Read by Arthur Blake, 12 hours 45 minutes. TB 7183.
Falklands veteran, Nick Sandman, VC, dreamed of restoring the ocean yacht "Sycorax" to its former glory. But he wasn't prepared for the devil's bargain he made with egomaniac TV star Tony Bannister - or the peril he sailed into on his very first voyage. Contains strong language. TB 7183.
Forester, C S
The man in the yellow raft. 1969. Read by Marvin Kane, 5 hours 30 minutes. TB 891.
A collection of sea stories about the Pacific war on the eve of, or just after, Pearl Harbour. TB 891.
Forester, C S
Mr Midshipman Hornblower. 1950. Read by David Broomfield, 8 hours 55 minutes. TB 359.
Hornblower series; book 1.The first story about Hornblower, still only a midshipman, but with promise of a great future. TB 359.
Forester, C S
Lieutenant Hornblower. 1952. Read by Robert Gladwell, 10 hours 15 minutes. TB 2362.
Hornblower series; book 2. An adventure episode in Horatio Hornblower's early life. TB 2362.
Forester, C S
Hornblower and the 'Hotspur'. 1962. Read by Richard Baker, 11 hours 15 minutes. TB 169.
Hornblower series; book 3. The adventures of Captain Hornblower and his sailors in the Hotspur during the Napoleonic Wars. TB 169.
Forester, C S
Captain Hornblower RN, Hornblower and the 'Atropos', Happy return, and, Ship of the line. 1987. Read by Robert Gladwell, 36 hours 37 minutes. TB 10614.
Hornblower series; books 4-6. "Hornblower and the Atropos": Skippering the flagship for Nelson's funeral is not Hornblower's idea of action but soon he is ordered to set sail for the Mediterranean in the Atropos. "The Happy Return": Hornblower sails the South American waters and comes face to face with a mad, messianic revolutionary. "A ship of the line": Commando raids, hurricanes at sea, the glowering menace of Napoleon's gun batteries; all these Hornblower must face as he sails his ship to the Spanish station. TB 10614.
Forester, C S
Admiral Hornblower. 1990. Read by George Hagan, 41 hours 44 minutes. TB 8346.
Hornblower series; books 7-10. From the Mediterranean to Havana, Hornblower's finest battles at sea and on land. The anthology contains "Flying Colours", "The Commodore", "Lord Hornblower" and "Hornblower in the West Indies". TB 8346.
Forester, C S
Hornblower and the crisis. 2007. Read by Christian Rodska, 4 hours 16 minutes. TB 15421.
Hornblower during the crisis - Hornblower's temptation - The last encounter.
Hornblower series; book 11. On the threshold of securing his first post as captain, Hornblower finds himself forced by the exigencies of war to fight alongside a man whom he has unintentionally helped to court-martial. For the first time Hornblower assents to engaging in espionage in his efforts to bring victory and glory to England and the Napoleonic Wars. This final Hornblower novel is followed by the author's notes regarding the novel's conclusion. Also included in this volume are two stories - Hornblower's Temptation and The Last Encounter - that depict the great sea dog Hornblower in his youth and old age, respectively. TB 15421.
Golding, William
Rites of passage. 1980. Read by George Hagan, 8 hours 46 minutes. TB 4022.
Edmund Talbot series; book 1. There is a strange assortment of people aboard the wooden ship making her way early in the last century from the South of England to Australia. For his godfather's entertainment a young man, Edmund Talbot, keeps a journal of the voyage. Winner of the 1980 Booker Prize. TB 4022.
Golding, William
Close quarters. 1987. Read by Raymond Sawyer, 8 hours 12 minutes. TB 7799.
Edmund Talbot series; book 2. In this second book of the "Edmund Talbot" trilogy, the young aristocrat, on his way to Australia to become a governor’s ADC, continues his journey. He describes the eventful voyage aboard an eighteenth-century fighting ship, converted to carry passengers and cargo from England to Australia. The forced proximity of passengers and crew intensifies all emotions to breaking point and Edmund himself falls in love - a totally new and wholly disorienting experience. TB 7799.
Golding, William
Fire down below. 1989. Read by Raymond Sawyer, 9 hours 22 minutes. TB 7941.
Edmund Talbot series; book 3. Narrated by Edmund Talbot aboard the decrepit old warship which lurches towards Australia, this novel is a mixed tale of travel and personal discovery. At sea, the hulk is charged with the care and protection of the lives of her colourful crew. Edward Talbot's progression towards self realisation is as turbulent as the voyage of his ship; as he engages with other people, especially incomprehensible women, so the ship must face the incomprehensible elements. TB 7941.
Hibbert, Christopher
Nelson: a personal history. 1994. Read by Christopher Oxford, 16 hours 26 minutes. TB 14098.
In this tale of Nelson's life on and off the high seas, the author illuminates the admiral's personality, his personal and political friendships, and his passionate love affair with Sir William Hamilton's wife, the beautiful Lady Emma, daughter of a blacksmith and once a London prostitute. TB 14098.
Higgins, Jack
Storm warning. 1976. Read by Andrew Timothy, 9 hours 15 minutes. TB 3144.
In August 1944 Captain Berger decided to risk sailing the Deutschland to Kiel, 5000 miles across oceans dominated by the Allied navies. This is the epic account of his act of reckless courage. TB 3144.
Innes, Hammond
The last voyage: Captain Cook's lost diary. 1981. Read by Patrick Romer, 7 hours 36 minutes. TB 10635.
July 1776: Captain James Cook sails from Plymouth, in the three masted collier Resolution, to find the North West Passage. It is his third voyage and last voyage of discovery, one that will take in the icy Arctic wasteland and the tropical Hawaiian waters and Hammond Innes has created the diary he might have written. TB 10635.
Innes, Hammond
The 'Mary Deare'. 1956. Read by Eric Gillett, 9 hours 21 minutes. TB 808.
The story of a freighter three times torpedoed and twice wrecked, and of desperate men fighting against death and danger. TB 808.
Innes, Hammond
The wreck of the "Mary Deare". 1956. Read by Ian Stuart, 8 hours 13 minutes. TB 10101.
The "Sea Witch", fighting its way through the March gales in the Channel, encounters a steamer which appears to ignore its signals and bears down on the little vessel. There is no one to be seen on board. The crew board her and find one man. This is the start of a series of events culminating in a desperate struggle for survival in the cold seas off France. TB 10101.
Innes, Hammond
'North Star'. 1974. Read by Stephen Jack, 11 hours. TB 2820.
In Shetland waters, the mate of a distant water trawler, seeking strength to build a new life for himself, encounters quite unexpected dangers, including the awful hazards met by men at work on an oil-rig. TB 2820.
Innes, Hammond
Medusa. 1988. Read by William Abney, 12 hours 8 minutes. TB 7603.
A nautical adventure in the Mediterranean involves Mike Steele of Menorca and Captain Jones of the Medusa, an obsolete frigate. Political turmoil and violence erupt, leading both men into great danger, enacted against a background of turbulent human emotions. TB 7603.
Johnston, Ronald
The angry ocean. 1968. Read by John Dunn, 7 hours 35 minutes. TB 945.
A supertanker struggles across the Pacific and this is the story of the men behind the project. TB 945.
Kent, Alexander
Richard Bolitho, midshipman: a midshipman Bolitho story. 1975. Read by Derek Chandler, 4 hours 39 minutes. TB 6553.
Richard Bolitho series; book 1. Although only 16, Midshipman Richard Bolitho is already a veteran of 4 years on the King's Navy. In October 1772 he joins his second ship, the 74-gun "Gorgon". Her captain is ordered to take her to Africa's West Coast to destroy the growing menace of piracy across the trade routes. Soon it becomes evident that their enemy is as dangerous and skilful as any encountered in the line of battle. TB 6553.
Kent, Alexander
Band of brothers. 2006. Read by Christopher Oxford, 3 hours 29 minutes. TB 14973.
Richard Bolitho series; book 2. The new year seems to offer Richard Bolitho and his friend Martyn Dancer the culmination of a dream. Both have been recommended for promotion, although they have not yet gained the coveted lieutenant's commission. But a routine passage from Plymouth to Guernsey in an untried schooner becomes, for Bolitho, a passage from midshipman to King's officer, tempering the promise of the future with the bitter price of maturity. TB 14973.
Kent, Alexander
Stand into danger. 1980. Read by Christopher Oxford, 9 hours 45 minutes. TB 13796.
Richard Bolitho series; book 3. Plymouth, 1774. Richard Bolitho is now newly appointed Third Lieutenant, joining the 28-gun frigate 'Destiny'. It is a far step from midshipman's berth to wardroom - and Bolitho must come to understand that his loyalty is to his captain, his ship and His Britannic Majesty. Despatched on a secret mission, 'Destiny' and her company face the hazards of conspiracy, treason and piracy. It is amidst the broadside battles at sea and the clash of swords that Bolitho learns to accept his new responsibilities as a King's officer. TB 13796.
Kent, Alexander
In gallant company. 1977. Read by Malcolm Ruthven, 10 hours 52 minutes. TB 3225.
Richard Bolitho series; book 4. In 1777 Richard Bolitho was a young lieutenant aboard the Trojan, endeavouring to prevent military supplies from reaching Washington's armies and to destroy the fleets of foreign privateers. TB 3225.