tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post1946686920713199695..comments2024-03-28T13:46:08.524-05:00Comments on Every goddamn day: 03/28/24: Books on the nightstand: the Patrick O'Brian novelsNeil Steinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11468057838260476480noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-82043867930026930372017-07-08T15:53:30.296-05:002017-07-08T15:53:30.296-05:00The pictured vessel is, I believe, "Old Irons...The pictured vessel is, I believe, "Old Ironsides," the only man o' war saved from the breaking yards by a poem.<br /><br /> "Aye tear her tattered ensign down<br /> Long has it waved on high.<br /> And many an eye has danced to see<br /> That banner in the sky."<br /><br />Tom Tomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09641357239788323783noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-72891591726357989122017-07-08T14:31:12.593-05:002017-07-08T14:31:12.593-05:00They are wonderful read-aloud books. I have read ...They are wonderful read-aloud books. I have read them all, listened to many and read them aloud to my husband on our commute to work. I am not sure which is my favorite, as you say they all ring true. I have crushes on many of the characters and find these books delightful to come back to repeated... not all fiction can stand up to re-repeated reading, O'Brian can.Ro Duran McBridehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00224432570018527438noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-46162395532820423082017-07-08T13:23:52.410-05:002017-07-08T13:23:52.410-05:00Best novels ever. I've read them all twice, an...Best novels ever. I've read them all twice, and would some day read them again.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13877137208397390419noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-26522832948063316242017-07-08T10:34:54.608-05:002017-07-08T10:34:54.608-05:00I read them all, starting from the beginning, but ...I read them all, starting from the beginning, but it's been better than six years since I completed the last one, so I've forgotten some of the finer points. I was given the first three of the series by a friend from work who said he tried to read them but couldn't get into it. I remember reading one Hornblower book, long ago when I was a teenager, fifty-plus years ago now, but I never read another.Fredhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02892229657147137472noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-34419764730695558172017-07-08T09:09:54.958-05:002017-07-08T09:09:54.958-05:00Curse you Steinberg! I have read and enjoyed some ...Curse you Steinberg! I have read and enjoyed some of the books over the years, but now must consider listening to all 21 in sequence.<br /><br />To the growing body of enthusiasts, Aubry and Maturin are somewhat like Homes and Watson, "two men who never lived and so can never die." Like Doyle's other literary creations, e.g. "The White Company," they were also based on actual historical events. But O'Brien, it turns out, is the better story teller.<br /><br />Tom Tomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09641357239788323783noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-66345292315888207832017-07-08T08:43:49.346-05:002017-07-08T08:43:49.346-05:00My father was a fan of the Horatio Hornblower seri...My father was a fan of the Horatio Hornblower series. Even though I rooted for the Cubs because he did and joined the Navy because he had done so, I thought Horatio was below my literary standard. Certainly, if Horatio was done as well as O'Brian's books, I was dead wrong. I'll try both...soon.<br /><br />johntatehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10088632798195131329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-64030011014253196422017-07-08T04:26:38.823-05:002017-07-08T04:26:38.823-05:00Thanks for this. I too have read all 21 books, all...Thanks for this. I too have read all 21 books, all on audio. Also, thanks for mentioning the scene where Jack is sentenced to pillory. One of my favorite moments. <br />I didn't like the movie because there's too much nuance to all the characters to fit into a two hour film. You got all of Jack's heroics, but none of his flaws. <br />I also submit that Dr. Maturin is perhaps the single most interesting character in literature. An Irish, Spanish, Catholic, monarchist, polyglot, opium addict, naturalist, spy, diplomat, with far more money than he will ever need. <br />Another moment I will never forget is when they pretend to be a French ship under attack with the intention of landing on a Baltic Sea island to persuade a regiment of Catalan soldiers to break with Napoleon. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10979150128713014768noreply@blogger.com