Dinner and Acknowledgments
Last Thursday evening, Roy's ocean-to-table commitment was evident from start to finish. Inspired by the fishermen in Kipling's story, Roy's own fishing was the basis for our entire meal. The appetizer table held plates of yellowtail and bluefin, along with smoked salmon, halibut, and ahi poke. And the dinner table featured trays of roasted Dungeness crab, paired with side salads and bread. A meal entirely of seafood and entirely from Roy's own catch. Kudos to our captain!
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| Sushi, salmon, poke, and a cheese selection |
Our Discussion of Captains Courageous by Rudyard Kipling
Better known for The Jungle Book, Kim, and short stories about colonial India, Rudyard Kipling wrote his novella, Captains Courageous, while living in Vermont. The story is simple: spoiled rich kid (Harvey) falls off an ocean liner bound for Europe and is rescued by a fishing boat crew. The captain refuses to return to port and instead puts Harvey to work. In short order, Harvey drops his dandified ways, blends in with the crew, and when the boat returns to Gloucester, Harvey impresses his parents with his newfound maturity and work ethic.
If it weren't for the impenetrable writing, we might have given Kipling his due for churning out a passable coming-of-age story for young readers. But Kipling's strange blend of nautical terms, sailors' argot, and Anglo-American elocution created one head-scratching paragraph after another. Glenn was shocked how long it took to read all 107 pages; Stan and Dean simply gave up. For some of us, the Horatio Alger parallels (Doug, me) were obvious, but less interesting than the insights on 19th century fishing practices (Larry, Roy) and the hardships of a fishing town like Gloucester, dependent on a single, high-mortality industry (Paul, Terry).
Our Rating of Captains Courageous
Had we been asked to rate Paul's boyhood abridged version, we might have been more generous. But the full-length Young Adult edition written in 1897 by an Indian-born expat Englishman in Vermont about a polyglot crew of American fishermen made for a trite and at times undigestible adventure story. Rating: 5.5--our lowest in 5 years.
Next Up: Ski Weekend in January
In January we'll decamp for the high Sierras and hope for deep powder. With no book assigned for January, Doug proposed Claire Keegan's Small Things Like These as our collective holiday read. Short, inspiring, and--yes!--well-written, too.
While I'll admit to reading the massively abridged version with my kids many years ago, I did also get through the full Kipling novel(la). While I found it a plod to get through parts, I also found it fascinating from a historical perspective. The grim reality of the dangers of fishing, the stoicism of the fisherman, and the annual gathering in Gloucester to remember the year's dead, remind us of a time when danger in life was far more common and accepted. Of course there's also the notion that a snotty kid can be fixed by punching him in the nose. Back then made sense, today gets you arrested. I echo the sentiment of several members of the club that I didn't find it an easy or really enjoyable read, but I'm glad I read it.
ReplyDeleteYou're right, Paul. No one claimed to have enjoyed the book but most found something interesting or redeeming in the story. And of course it's one of those titles we'd all heard of and, now, have finally read. There's some satisfaction in that. (But not as much as reading an anthology of Horatio Alger, Jr!)
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