---
product_id: 6949135
title: "A Sea of Words, Third Edition: A Lexicon and Companion to the Complete Seafaring Tales of Patrick O'Brian"
price: "362 kr"
currency: DKK
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reviews_count: 13
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---

# A Sea of Words, Third Edition: A Lexicon and Companion to the Complete Seafaring Tales of Patrick O'Brian

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- **What is this?** A Sea of Words, Third Edition: A Lexicon and Companion to the Complete Seafaring Tales of Patrick O'Brian
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## Description

desertcart.com: A Sea of Words, Third Edition: A Lexicon and Companion to the Complete Seafaring Tales of Patrick O'Brian: 9780805066159: King, Dean, Hattendorf, John B., Estes, J. Worth: Books

Review: A Grand Selection from 8,000 words, 400 ships, 500 people, and 1,200 places - Perhaps the most astonishing sentence in the fascinating "A Sea of Words" appears on p. xix: "Our survey of O'Brian's books found more than 8,000 words that could use defining for modern readers, including the names of some 400 ships, 500 people, and 1,200 places." No wonder we wondered as we wandered with Jack & Stephen! After reading this almost 500 page book, many of us will be wandering considerably less. It even has translations from French, Spanish, and Latin together (for the Latin) with full attribution to the author (such as Horace) and the poem. Two reader alerts: 1. The book is a fine mixture of biography, geography, biology, botany, naval battles, ships, shoes, sealing wax, cabbages and kings. There are good reproductions of portraits & etchings, mini-essays on notable ships & battles, an informative 30 page chapter on the Royal Navy & French wars and a masterful 20 page section on naval medicine at the time. This array of richness is in addition to the more usual lexicon entries such as "Jones, Tom: the boisterous hero of Henry Fielding's novel, 'Tom Jones,'" and "close to the wind: When a ship's BOW is pointing as far into the wind as possible without LUFFING the sails." Readers who like this variety and detail will find every page fascinating. Readers who expect a brief-entry dictionary format may be surprised. 2. The words selected reflect Dr. Maturin's enthusiasm for medicine, botany & biology as well as Jack Aubrey's nautical world. Thus, entries such as "clouded yellow: A butterfly of the genus Colias, especially c.edusa" are well-represented along with "coaming: A raised border around HATCHES and SCUTTLES that prevents water on deck from running below." Again, thoroughly appropriate selection in a companion to the complete tales, but perhaps also a surprise to those expecting a more exclusively nautical array. "A Sea of Words" is well-worth having, almost like a 21st book in the series, bringing readers vividly into the world O'Brian created. It has additional merit in making clear part of the magic of this world is brilliant reporting of actual events & personages such as Christie-Palliere, Lord St. Vincent, and the determined Queenie Thrale who was the beauteous daughter of no less than Dr. Johnson's Hester Thrale. There are extensive, helpful quotes from letters & naval dispatches, including Lord St. Vincent's exasperation at Queenie's importunings on behalf of one of the real world inspirations for Jack Aubrey. And merit in addition to merit, reading "A Sea of Words" can enrich not only the glorious Aubrey-Maturin canon but also can improve splendidly a reader's delight in other work of the age of sail, such as the Gilbert-Sullivan's "Pirates of Penzance" and "Pinafore." For example, "Though related to a peer,I can hand, reef and steer" may have extra meaning after considering the drawing of sailors dizzyingly shown 100 feet aloft & reading the nautical details of competing approaches to reefing. Here and there, a few minor questions. Perhaps a few of the citations could be more useful if more complete, such as indicating "white letter" or Roman type was used in contrast to the Germanic "black letter" style and perhaps including the slightly saltier meanings (where called for by the text) to terms such as "rove" and "roving." And yes, part of the continued pleasure is the authors' respect for their readers' abilities & at least basic naval knowledge. This makes for participatory rather than passive reading. I'd a USCG Captain's license for under 100 ton sail but reading "A Sea of Words" is still a long, welcome, wonderful voyage of discovery. Authors: sail on, blue pennant at the mast. Many readers already have appreciated your book and new readers are likely to enjoy most thoroughly this splendid companion & lexicon for O'Brian's Glorious Series.
Review: Very Helpful - If you’re just getting into the Master and Commander Books like me, one of the first things you notice is that the author doesn’t care that you know nothing of sailing in the Napoleonic era. Lol. So some tips for my fellow landlubbers. 1. Several YouTube videos were helpful and interesting. “How an 18th Century Battleship Works” by Animagraphs. And “HMS Victory Total Guide Part 1 and 2” by Epic History TV 2. Get this book. After regular dictionaries and google repeatedly failed me, I picked up this book in paperback. It’s been super useful. I prefer the paperback version over the Kindle version because (1) I’m reading the novels on Kindle and it’s just easier to thumb through the book; and (2) it’s easier to see the illustrations. I highly recommend this.

## Technical Specifications

| Specification | Value |
|---------------|-------|
| ASIN  | 0805066152 |
| Best Sellers Rank | #150,106 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #115 in British & Irish Literary Criticism (Books) #318 in Literary Criticism & Theory #1,146 in Historical British & Irish Literature |
| Customer Reviews | 4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars (411) |
| Dimensions  | 5.6 x 0.95 x 8.2 inches |
| Edition  | First Edition |
| ISBN-10  | 9780805066159 |
| ISBN-13  | 978-0805066159 |
| Item Weight  | 1.05 pounds |
| Language  | English |
| Print length  | 528 pages |
| Publication date  | October 1, 2000 |
| Publisher  | Holt Paperbacks |

## Images

![A Sea of Words, Third Edition: A Lexicon and Companion to the Complete Seafaring Tales of Patrick O'Brian - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41DmAXTHXaL.jpg)
![A Sea of Words, Third Edition: A Lexicon and Companion to the Complete Seafaring Tales of Patrick O'Brian - Image 2](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51tQr3nQitL.jpg)
![A Sea of Words, Third Edition: A Lexicon and Companion to the Complete Seafaring Tales of Patrick O'Brian - Image 3](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71cpe1nHdML.jpg)
![A Sea of Words, Third Edition: A Lexicon and Companion to the Complete Seafaring Tales of Patrick O'Brian - Image 4](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81XkWtlC77L.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A Grand Selection from 8,000 words, 400 ships, 500 people, and 1,200 places
*by O***L on July 19, 2013*

Perhaps the most astonishing sentence in the fascinating "A Sea of Words" appears on p. xix: "Our survey of O'Brian's books found more than 8,000 words that could use defining for modern readers, including the names of some 400 ships, 500 people, and 1,200 places." No wonder we wondered as we wandered with Jack & Stephen! After reading this almost 500 page book, many of us will be wandering considerably less. It even has translations from French, Spanish, and Latin together (for the Latin) with full attribution to the author (such as Horace) and the poem. Two reader alerts: 1. The book is a fine mixture of biography, geography, biology, botany, naval battles, ships, shoes, sealing wax, cabbages and kings. There are good reproductions of portraits & etchings, mini-essays on notable ships & battles, an informative 30 page chapter on the Royal Navy & French wars and a masterful 20 page section on naval medicine at the time. This array of richness is in addition to the more usual lexicon entries such as "Jones, Tom: the boisterous hero of Henry Fielding's novel, 'Tom Jones,'" and "close to the wind: When a ship's BOW is pointing as far into the wind as possible without LUFFING the sails." Readers who like this variety and detail will find every page fascinating. Readers who expect a brief-entry dictionary format may be surprised. 2. The words selected reflect Dr. Maturin's enthusiasm for medicine, botany & biology as well as Jack Aubrey's nautical world. Thus, entries such as "clouded yellow: A butterfly of the genus Colias, especially c.edusa" are well-represented along with "coaming: A raised border around HATCHES and SCUTTLES that prevents water on deck from running below." Again, thoroughly appropriate selection in a companion to the complete tales, but perhaps also a surprise to those expecting a more exclusively nautical array. "A Sea of Words" is well-worth having, almost like a 21st book in the series, bringing readers vividly into the world O'Brian created. It has additional merit in making clear part of the magic of this world is brilliant reporting of actual events & personages such as Christie-Palliere, Lord St. Vincent, and the determined Queenie Thrale who was the beauteous daughter of no less than Dr. Johnson's Hester Thrale. There are extensive, helpful quotes from letters & naval dispatches, including Lord St. Vincent's exasperation at Queenie's importunings on behalf of one of the real world inspirations for Jack Aubrey. And merit in addition to merit, reading "A Sea of Words" can enrich not only the glorious Aubrey-Maturin canon but also can improve splendidly a reader's delight in other work of the age of sail, such as the Gilbert-Sullivan's "Pirates of Penzance" and "Pinafore." For example, "Though related to a peer,I can hand, reef and steer" may have extra meaning after considering the drawing of sailors dizzyingly shown 100 feet aloft & reading the nautical details of competing approaches to reefing. Here and there, a few minor questions. Perhaps a few of the citations could be more useful if more complete, such as indicating "white letter" or Roman type was used in contrast to the Germanic "black letter" style and perhaps including the slightly saltier meanings (where called for by the text) to terms such as "rove" and "roving." And yes, part of the continued pleasure is the authors' respect for their readers' abilities & at least basic naval knowledge. This makes for participatory rather than passive reading. I'd a USCG Captain's license for under 100 ton sail but reading "A Sea of Words" is still a long, welcome, wonderful voyage of discovery. Authors: sail on, blue pennant at the mast. Many readers already have appreciated your book and new readers are likely to enjoy most thoroughly this splendid companion & lexicon for O'Brian's Glorious Series.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Very Helpful
*by C***R on August 23, 2023*

If you’re just getting into the Master and Commander Books like me, one of the first things you notice is that the author doesn’t care that you know nothing of sailing in the Napoleonic era. Lol. So some tips for my fellow landlubbers. 1. Several YouTube videos were helpful and interesting. “How an 18th Century Battleship Works” by Animagraphs. And “HMS Victory Total Guide Part 1 and 2” by Epic History TV 2. Get this book. After regular dictionaries and google repeatedly failed me, I picked up this book in paperback. It’s been super useful. I prefer the paperback version over the Kindle version because (1) I’m reading the novels on Kindle and it’s just easier to thumb through the book; and (2) it’s easier to see the illustrations. I highly recommend this.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Great for hornblower and aubrey.
*by F***T on November 25, 2024*

Contains most words from the books.

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*Last updated: 2026-03-04*