BOOKS

Pirate’s Passage, by William Gilkerson, Trumpeter Books, Boston, 2006
(distributed by Random House) 364 pages, with 50 line illustrations.

From blurbs and early reviews:

“Wonderfully authentic… vividly brings to life the dark and violent life of the pirates of the Caribbean.”
– David Cordingly, historian, author of Under the Black Flag.

“This marvellous tale crashed over me like a great wave, submerging me in a gleeful yarn of adventure, intrigue, and memorable characters. Pirate’s Passage creates its own kind of ship - - and I advise any readers who enjoy a rollicking good story to climb aboard!”
– T.A. Barron, author of The Great tree of Avalon.

“Pirate’s Passage is… a detailed history of piracy, which explains how intricately interwoven are the history of the sea and the land. It blurs the lines between who is a pirate and who is a navy man; between good and evil.”
– Beverly Ware for the Halifax Chronicle Herald.

“Just as a skeletal frame is transformed into a worthy vessel by the addition of planking and caulking and such, so the wealth of cleverly noted details, deft dialogue, and author Gilkerson’s artful storytelling, allow this beamy, buoyant book to float right on its marks…. Pirate’s Passage deserves to be added to the shelf of classic salty adventure tales written by such authors as Robert Louis Stevenson, Arthur Ransom, and Stephen W. Meader… Gilkerson’s dry and sardonic humor might be just what is needed to reawaken interest in this genre of literature that once added so much enjoyment to the process of growing up. Older readers may be assured that just as good adult books — C.S. Forester’s Hornblower books are a prime example — can be devoured by young readers, so too Pirate’s Passage can be profitably enjoyed by adults.”
– WoodenBoat magazine, reviewed by W.H. Bunting, author of Sea Struck.

“Gilkerson weaves mini-lessons on the history of Western piracy into a suspenseful story of precarious friendship and trust, employing multiple elements of Treasure Island for his own ends… Pirate enthusiasts, prepare to settle in for a delicious unsettling adventure.” – review by The Bulletin of the Centre for Children’s Books, University of Illinois.

“Now here is a delightful story that combines the love of the sea and coastal life in Nova Scotia, with an intriguing yarn about a young boy into whose life an old salt enters on a stormy day in winter. It has the making of a classic; and this one is quite special, offering memorable characters, adventure, intrigue, and self discovery.”
– review – Coastal Sailing.

“I enjoyed (Pirate’s Passage) more than anything I’ve read for years. Three cheers… for a brand new classic. It has the magic… plotting, character, dialogue, and a story that’s funny, dark and memorable”.
– Mark R. Myers, Pres. Em., Royal Society of Marine Artists.

“(Gilkerson’s) latest work is a brilliantly conceived and told story that could sit on the same shelf as Tom Sawyer, Anne of Green Gables, and Treasure Island when it is not being avidly read and re-read. Pirate’s Passage is a multi-layered, seamlessly woven yet intimate tapestry of tales within a tale…”
– review by Captain Daniel Moreland from the square-rigged barque Picton Castle, in the Indian Ocean.

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Books by William Gilkerson that are still in print should be ordered from the publishers listed. Out-of-print titles may generally be located from one or another of the bookfinding services that are available on the Web.

In reverse chronological order, William Gilkerson's books include:

• 

  Ultimate Voyage, Shambhala Publications, Boston, 1998. Subtitled. A Book of Five Mariners, this is the artist's first novel, a maritime historical yarn with color frontispiece and brush and ink drawings throughout. With 326 pages in 6" x 9" format. Hardbound.

• 

  Boarders Away (Volume I & II), Andrew Mowbray, Inc., Lincoln, R.I., 1991.
  The first volume, subtitled With Steel - the edged weapons and polearms of the classical age of fighting sail, 1626-1826...tracing their development in the navies of England and the United States, researches this subject for the first time. 176 pages, in 8½" x 11" format, and hundreds of illustrations, both photos and drawings, in color and black and white. Hardbound.



Amazon

• 

  The second volume, subtitled With Fire, continues pioneering research of the previous work, dealing with the firearms and combustibles of the sailing navies. With 332 pages in the same format as the first volume, but double the text and the number of illustrations. These two books have become the standard source references in this field of arms study. Hardbound.
  



Amazon

• 

  The Ships of John Paul Jones, Naval Institute Press and the Beverley R. Robinson Collection, U.S. Naval Academy Museum 1987. Portrays all of Jones's ships, as well as other vessels that he sailed on, with accompanying story text by the artist; 88 pages in 9" x 11½" format, with 12 full color plates and dozens of duotone and line plates; hardbound.
  

• An Arctic Whaling Sketchbook, Edward J. Lefkowicz, Inc., Fairhaven, 1983. Includes artist's remarks regarding the studies prepared for American Whalers in the Western Arctic, plus reproductions of scores of drawings; 56 pages in 15" x 12" format, two-color, in an edition limited to 120 copies, hardbound.
  

• American Whalers in the Western Arctic, Edward J. Lefkowicz, Inc., Fairhaven, 1983. Subtitled: The final epoch of the great American sailing whaling fleet, an anecdotal history by John R. Bockstoce, with portfolio of 12 color plates by Gilkerson plus numerous brush and ink drawings throughout. Published with 56 pages in elephant folio, 15" x 19" format, in an edition limited to 400 copies, hardbound.
  

• Maritime Arts by William Gilkerson, Published by the Peabody Museum of Salem, 1981. Text and reproductions (in color and black and white) covering all work which appeared in the museum's 1981 one-man show by the artist. 96 pages in 8½" x 11" format, published in both softbound and a limited hardbound edition.
  

• The Scrimshander, Troubador Press, San Francisco, 1975. Subtitled: The nautical ivory worker and his art of scrimshaw, historical and contemporary. Includes text on old and new scrimshaw, and primarily a photographic, portfolio in black and white of Gilkerson scrimshaw. Contains 124 pages in 8" x 10" format in a hard and soft bound edition. In 1978 a second edition was published containing many revisions and additional work: soft- bound.
  

• 

  Gilkerson on War from rocks to rockets, McGraw-Hill Book Co., N.Y., 1963. A satirical history of warfare throughout the ages, with color illustrations throughout. 64 pages in 12½" x 9" format, hardbound.
  

• International League of Antiquarian Booksellers
• Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America

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