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Khizan posted:I always figured it wasn't that they didn't believe long-range accurate fire was necessary so much as they they didn't figure it was possible. They're on a mobile gun platform that's moving in all three dimensions, firing at another platform that's moving in all three dimensions, only at different speeds and in different directions. The guns are heavy, slow to reload, difficult to aim precisely under shipboard conditions, and they're fixed to the broadside. And, relative to the toughness of a ship, they're not that powerful, so you're going to need a lot of hits to do the job. Funnily enough, the Brits were known for trying the difficult shots more than the French. Rear Admiral Sir John Leake criticized the French 'manner of firing chiefly wounding the masts and rigging (as if to secure a retreat rather than a victory)' during the Battle of Malaga. The Brits by reputation largely aimed at the more difficult to hit hull. Really it's hard to say whose theory of gunnery was better. The French often gave as good as they got leading up to the revolution. After the terror, the French naval officer corps was decimated, and with it the ability to quickly train up good crews. Trafalgar was more an illustration of the perils of leading ill trained men than an indictment of either side's fighting prowess. Raskolnikov2089 fucked around with this message at 06:56 on Dec 3, 2013 |
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Dec 3, 2013 05:05
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At one point when they're on land, Stephen asks Jack a question about the tide, and Jack just stares at him for a moment because he's not sure if Stephen is screwing with him or just genuinely doesn't know. They have such a great bromance.
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Dec 11, 2013 18:24
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CarterUSM posted:Ah, no matter how many times I read it, that moment in "The Reverse of the Medal" chokes me up every single time. It's like the diametric opposite of that moment in "Storm of Swords". It's my absolute favorite moment in the series. It always gets me a little misty eyed too. Great, now I have to go read it.
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Dec 16, 2013 06:40
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Blog Free or Die posted:I'm really enjoying Pride and Prejudice a lot more after reading O'Brian. If you haven't read her stuff in a while, check it; there's a reason she was his favorite author. A lot of the little 'jokes' in the series that are dropped in background description went way over my head the first time reading the series, now I'm noticing them everywhere in Austen as well. Right with you buddy. Patrick O'Brian taught me to appreciate Jane Austen. You should also check out Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell.
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Feb 20, 2014 17:13
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Prolonged Priapism posted:I just finished Blue at the Mizzen. I'm sorry. I felt like I lost a friend when I realized I had finished the series. I've re-read the series about 3 or 4 times now, and I always find new details I missed, new shades to each character. You'll read these many more times quote:I will also say that the most shocking event of the series (for me) was... Really? Not Bonden?
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Apr 13, 2014 00:14
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Hornblower is probably the best after Aubrey/Maturin. I agree though, he does get really annoying. I was lucky enough to read Hornblower before this series, so it didn't bother me as much. Now I can't be bothered to re-read Hornblower's books. They just aren't as enjoyable having read a far superior series.
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Apr 13, 2014 17:32
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king of no pants posted:I absolutely loved the movie and have been steadily working through my book list until I have an opening to slot in all of the novels. As it turns out, I simply don't have the patience to wait any longer and I'm bumping these to the front as soon as I finish the series I'm on now. Read it slowly. O'Brian's prose is deceptively sparse. Time jumps 6 weeks in the space between two sentences. Raskolnikov2089 fucked around with this message at 16:48 on Jun 14, 2014 |
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Jun 14, 2014 03:43
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AlphaDog posted:I found in the later novels, that while there are still more sudden time/location jumps than you might be used to, they're communicated better. I thought that maybe I just got used to them, but I'm starting to re-read the series (nearly finished book 3 again), and the jumps in Post Captain are a lot more jarring than they are in, say The Wine Dark Sea. I like them. It made me a much more patient reader. Patrick O'Brian taught me to enjoy Jane Austen and Charles Dickens. I just finished HMS Surprise for the 5th time. I'm at the point where I can grab a book at any point in the series at random and just really, really enjoy it. This really is the ultimate bromance series.
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Jun 14, 2014 16:49
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Fortune is bald from behind.
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Jul 21, 2014 16:39
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http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2193468/The-Master-Commander-revealed-The-real-Captain-Jack-Aubrey-service.html This gentleman who is trying to sell his book about Edward Pellew says Edward Pellew is a much closer model for Jack Aubrey.
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Aug 8, 2014 22:40
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Octy posted:Just picked up The Wine-Dark Sea. Only 2.5 books to go! If it helps, Blue at the Mizzen is a perfect ending for the series. I haven't read the unfinished voyage because I was happy about where Blue ended. Also, you'll be able to read and re-read this series, and find something new in every book with each re-read. O'Brian's sparse prose has surprising depths.
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Aug 28, 2014 18:19
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:I imagine most readers of this thread have seen the Book of the Month thread for this month, but in case you missed it, we're doing Pride and Prejudice; same time setting as Aubrey/Maturin so there's a lot of overlap. Reading Patrick O'Brian trained me to enjoy Jane Austen, so definitely overlap.
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Sep 9, 2014 19:03
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bollig posted:Hey so, while I am not completely prepared to break my 'one book by an author a year' rule, I was thinking that maybe I could read a non-fiction book pertaining to the age of sail. I see the recommendation of A Sea of Words, but is that something I can kind of just sit down and read? Or is that more of a reference book? The little I see on the preview on Amazon makes it look like a pretty decent read. Try "To Rule the Waves". Good overview of fighting sail.
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Sep 16, 2014 04:40
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Yeah he's too good looking for Maturin. It's forgivable though, because he does an amazing job otherwise. He and Crowe have great chemistry in the movie. Bonden though. Seriously?
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Sep 16, 2014 16:05
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ItalicSquirrels posted:Having read Hornblower both in book order and written order, I never really noticed a difference. I definitely preferred Commodore Hornblower, though, just because that's when he seems to break out of a teenage-level funk and only doubts himself when it seems appropriate. You can definitely tell that Forester's writing improved as he went along because in chronological order there's a huge gap in readability between Hotspur or Atropos and Beat to Quarters. Beat to Quarters was written before Hotspur and Atropos. 20+ years before.
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Sep 19, 2014 18:20
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:Johnathan Strange and Mr. Norell I love this book. Anyone who enjoys Aubrey/Maturin will probably like Strange and Norell.
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Oct 20, 2014 16:13
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He was fostered in County Clare, which google maps tells me is northeast Ireland. This is probably where his family is from since he offers Padeen a farm in that region (Munster).
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Nov 12, 2014 21:45
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Prolonged Priapism posted:So at my local used book store they have all 20 novels in paperback (same editions too). $6 each. Worth it? I bought them all on an impulse when I found the entire series at 1/2 Price Books. Really shouldn't have at the time as it made me broke until my next check, but as many times as I've re-read them, totally worth it.
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Nov 14, 2014 03:49
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Arglebargle III posted:In 18, I must have missed something: how did Maturin get his fortune back after it was seized by the bank in Spain? He didn't have the right forms signed to transfer his money over, so it never happened.
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Nov 20, 2014 05:30
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khamul posted:I read the Hornblower series as a kid, then later started and put down one of the Aubrey books (HMS Surprise, I think), but I always found the original documents from the era to be better reading than the novels. With the BBC Radio 4 broadcast of one of the series I was interested in picking up one of the Aubrey-Maturin books again. Besides reading/listening to them all in order, is there a good book to start out with in the series? I'm taking a long car trip this January to get to the Battle of New Orleans bicentennial, and a good period adventure would help kill the time. Start from the first one. Skim as necessary. It won't matter, you'll re-read them all eventually.
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Dec 11, 2014 06:06
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NotWearingPants posted:I really enjoyed this series, and also the Horatio Hornblower series, but I'm just over halfway through the Alan Lewrie series by Dewey Lambdin and I am enjoying it even more. It's strange, but after Aubrey/Maturin, I just couldn't re-read Hornblower. They're fantastic books, but for me they just don't hold a candle. I'll give Alan Lewrie a try.
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Dec 19, 2014 17:59
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Arglebargle III posted:I feel like I should read some Jane Austen before I tackle Pride and Prejudice and Boats again. Read Emma. It's one of my faves. Rich sheltered women being passive aggressive to each other and freaking out about gypsies. It took me far too long to realize Clueless was a remake of Emma.
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Jan 16, 2015 17:16
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:My favorite Austen is actually Northanger Abbey, just because it's so hilarious if you've read a lot of other gothic fiction. I think the two biggest barriers to reading Austen are I've said it before but I *only* came to enjoy and appreciate Jane Austen because Patrick O'Brian made me a better reader. Same thing with Dickens, who I had no idea was so hilarious (thanks for nothing high school english).
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Jan 16, 2015 18:04
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Rewatching Master and Commander and I couldn't help but chuckle as Killick's only desire was to protect the Captain's silver plate. Nice bit of fan service.
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Feb 22, 2015 18:04
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Sappo569 posted:Finally got passed the hump I was feeling in the book, Jack got a chance to see what his carronades could do ! I had to force myself to finish Master and Commander my first time. Didn't try the series again for 3 years, and this only in a fit of desperation when I finished Hornblower and couldn't find anymore decent naval fiction. Now I've re-read the series 4-5 times, and can't really be bothered with Hornblower. It grows on you. I just had to learn to read Patrick O'Brian.
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Mar 12, 2015 16:31
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I've been able to refer to a walking sticks as phasmids two separate times to two separate parties, impressing them both times. Thank you Patrick O'Brian.
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May 13, 2015 19:30
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PlushCow posted:We know what Babbington is all about! Aren't his missing teeth because he contracted syphilis? Colonial Air Force posted:Frankly I'd be fine with it, just so long as we get more. That movie is one of my favorites, even before I read the books. No one wants to invest the money on the Age of Sail Wolf Hall and Outlander seem to be doing well, maybe this appetite for historical epics will continue. There will probably be another attempt to put O'Brian on the screen. I feel like he's going to be read 100 years from now the same way people still read Sherlock Holmes. Raskolnikov2089 fucked around with this message at 04:44 on Jul 21, 2015 |
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Jul 21, 2015 04:41
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Decius posted:Don't know about his teeth (dental hygiene wasn't that great at the time to begin with - just remember Higgins), but stunted growth that a lot of navy men (including high-born) have shown is often attributed to syphilis, and Babbington isn't a giant. Although the diet low in fruit and vegetables, with regular starving periods surely didn't help. I remember a specific description of him talking about his youthful appearance now much changed because he was missing teeth because of his amorous proclivities. It's somewhere at or before Treason's Harbor (just noticed it in my current re-read) Stephen talks about having cured him of the pox on several occasions. Raskolnikov2089 fucked around with this message at 06:04 on Jul 21, 2015 |
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Jul 21, 2015 06:01
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Genghis Cohen posted:In my experience/layman's knowledge, the southern, Cantonese-speaking Chinese, which is where the Chinese population of Malaysia, Indonesia etc originate from, are significantly shorter than the northern Chinese. I was taught in school it was because white rice, as a staple rather than grain, was less nutritious. Who knows. The point is a 16-stone woman, short or tall, is pretty loving bulky. For the non-Brits among us, that is 224 lbs. I liked how when he rescued the women from the pirates, some of them didn't want to leave their new pirate husbands.
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Jul 27, 2015 17:04
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CarterUSM posted:Also, I just finished "Blue at the Mizzen" for about the 5th time, and it's still as bittersweet as it ever was, knowing that there were no books after that, but also knowing that Aubrey got his flag, and it appeared that Christine Wood was waiting for Stephen back in England. (Also, yes, I know there's "Twenty One", but I don't count that. A partially written book fleshed out by notes is good to get a sense of the overall plot, but not all the delightful layers of prose that O'Brien was so good at bringing.) Still haven't bothered with "Twenty One". Blue at the Mizzen ends everything well, and if I never read "Twenty One" I can pretend that they're still out there somewhere, sailing along.
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Sep 3, 2015 16:34
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CowboyKid posted:Welp, just finished #21 and I'm bummed. If it helps, you'll find new things every time you re-read the series. I'm on my fifth re-read and find new layers to my favorite characters in every book. Raskolnikov2089 fucked around with this message at 05:03 on Feb 10, 2016 |
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Feb 10, 2016 04:59
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The Thirteen Gun Salute posted:But Muong did not really approve of this frequentation, and gradually it was borne in upon him that she thought the children tiresome, and the young mothers rather discreditable, even common. This works on so many levels. First the thought of a snobby orangutan is hilarious. But it's also an interesting insight into Steven and how he reads class motives into everything, a product of his time.
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Feb 24, 2016 07:08
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bondetamp posted:A rather deaf man named Watt. But his name actually was Watt? That's the actual First Lieutenant from the Shannon. I guess I'm not seeing the joke.
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Mar 15, 2016 05:46
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withak posted:I thought that the joke was they they thought that dismantling her cabin would be a disturbance, but then they are going to fire off all of the cannons a bunch of times anyway. I always liked the carpenter and his mates hammering away at something while Stephen is trying to sleep, and whispering to each other between hammer blows.
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Mar 15, 2016 17:01
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Subscribed to that channel, thanks. Could you post the Raspberry Shrub recipe? I'd like to give it a try before I buy the book.
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May 30, 2016 03:01
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Jack's new mother in law the dairy maid with her pledge to never rise before noon again after marrying the general. She's my spirit animal.
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Dec 18, 2016 18:53
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The Lord Bude posted:It's s testament to what can happen when you put a real director in charge of an action movie, as opposed to a scrub like Zach Snyder or Michael Bay. Jerry Bruckheimer's "The Wine Dark Sea"
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Jul 22, 2017 17:11
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Professor Shark posted:I am flying through Reverse of the Medal, it's very short compared to the others. I'm really enjoying the political intrigue, Wray is a great, believable antagonist. Reverse of the Medal always makes me tear up. You'll find out why.
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Sep 14, 2017 03:53
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Maturin in Letter of Marquee posted:And from this he moved to the opera, where they had heard a truly brilliant performance of Le Nozze di Figaro, brilliant from the first notes of the overture to what Stephen always looked upon as the true end, before the hurlyburly of jovial peasants -- the part where from a dead silence the dumbfounded Conte sings Contessa perdono, perdono, perdono with such an infinite subtletly of intonation. He repeated it inwardly several times, together with the Contessa's exquisite reply and the crowd's words to the effect that now they would all live happily ever after -- Ah tutti contenti saremo cosi -- but never to his satisfaction. For those who've never heard the duet Stephen is thinking of, this is it from Amadeus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTfiboMetpY&t=32s It really is lovely. I mentioned this passage to my husband since it's his favorite opera and he instantly agreed with Stephen's belief about the true end. Full ending here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2yrDWEoCpc
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Sep 16, 2017 05:05
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uPen posted:I never have and don't really plan on reading 21. As long as I never read 21, the series never really ends and Jack and Stephen are out there sailing along, forever.
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Oct 19, 2017 02:28
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