Shiyak!: Misadventures of the Schooner Lottie Bennett : The Last Windjammer Voyage to Alaskan Salmon Waters. By Tom Anderson. Hardcover.

　　The book is brand new and I have multiple copies, so no rush to get to it first. This would make a nice gift!

　　From the dust jacket flap:

　　Shiyak! is the true account of a sea adventure that took place in 1932. It recounts in beautifully flowing prose the tale of a journey to the Bering Sea region of Alaska in a four-masted, topsail schooner, the last commercial windship to sail from San Francisco Bay to Alaskan salmon waters. The voyage was a flamboyantly promoted co-operative fishing expedition to the Kuskokwim River. The promoters promised a glamorous trip with little work and a handsome profit in the midst of the Great Depression all for a modest investment. A diverse group of twenty-nine men with varied motives made the voyage. Poor planning and the greed of the ship's owners caused unnecessary hardships, including malnutrition, illness and the eventual failure of the enterprise. With an elegant prose style rare in today's fast-paced world, the author paints a sweeping portrait of desperate times, panoramic beauty and raw emotions. Photos from the author's own film of the voyage illustrate the tale. "Tom Anderson captures the glorious beauty of the Alaskan coast, together with the tough rhythms of commercial salmon fishing, in prose which mirrors the lyrical acuity of Herman Melville." Roberta Cairney, Legal Counsel, San Francisco

　　From the back of the dust jacket:

　　"Anderson tells a swashbuckling good story and a true one of man against the sea and man against man. Storms, near mutiny, scurvy, hair-raising escapes, from rocky shores, hardships and fights in the fo'c'sl: it's all there, together with a sensitive account of Eskimo life as it was before the use of outboard motors and canned food. An accomplished writer, Anderson has a sure eye for authentic seascape and a sure ear for salty dialect. Must reading for sailors and armchair adventurers." Grant Barnes, Director, Stanford University Press

　　"Ship out with Tom Anderson in a big schooner bound for the Alaska fisheries! A very true-to-life and gripping yarn of the last days of commercial sail." Peter Stanford, President, National Maritime History Society

　　"Shiyak! is a salty tale of the sea, and its hardships. Anderson describes, in always moving and colorful detail, the infinitely challenging aspects of sea and sky as seen from the unique vantage of an old-time sailing ship. For all those who savor raw adventure, testing the courage and character of its rough and varied seafarers, this book brings alive both sordidness and beauty in the majestic setting of the Far North. " Hon. Thomas B. Stewart, Alaska Superior Court.

　　"I hope Shiyak! reaches all of the men and women who, like myself, have a deep fondness for ships and those who sail them in fair weather and foul. " Rear Admiral Earl E. Stone, U.S. N., (Ret).

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　　Location: Juneau