R. Bruce Macdonald

The nautical reference book you never knew you needed: a compendium of all superstitions maritime and marine. Learn your A-B-Seas of sailors’ guiding magic and mythos―and why you should never stir your tea with a knife, lest you invite trouble and strife.

Ever wondered why the skipper gave you a hairy eyeball when you stepped aboard the ship with your left foot? Or why a brolly or a bumbershoot―for the newly seasoned sailor, an umbrella―will bring trouble aboard? Find out all this and more in Never Say P*g, the never-seen-before collection of maritime superstitions ranging from the East Coast to the Great Lakes of Canada, the Inuit to the First Nations Peoples of the Pacific Northwest. From A: why killing an albatross is bad luck, but seeing one is good luck―to B: why bananas are so feared that some sailors only refer to them as “that curved yellow fruit”―to C: clapping aboard a ship will bring thunder―you’ll be fluent in sailing superstitions in no time!

From sailor and author R. Bruce Macdonald―who swears he didn’t know not to stir his tea with a knife―comes an indispensable guide to the ways in which we ward off bad luck at sea and attempt to keep ourselves safe by shaping fate through signs and symbols. The original “marine insurance” for sailors, superstitions offered a semblance of control amidst a dangerous and volatile life aboard, at the mercy of the weather, the crew, the ship―even pirates. Ultimately, this encyclopedia reveals that superstitions have always been with us to comfort, to charm and to ease fears. Learn them all as you sail the high seas!

The Book of Sailors' Superstitions

Never Say P*g

This book is a biography of two British Columbian ships that performed legendary service in the Canadian Arctic. The St. Roch, now on permanent display at the Vancouver Maritime Museum, is the better known of the two, although North Star of Herschel Island is still sailing and still adding to her legend. Historian Bruce Macdonald—who, along with his wife, owns North Star of Herschel Island—has meticulously researched the origins and service logs of each ship and created a book that will enthrall old Arctic hands, maritime history buffs and anyone who appreciates well-written Canadian history. Under the command of Captain Henry Larsen, the sturdy RCMP vessel St. Roch spent years showing the Canadian flag in the Arctic, performing many duties including delivering medical supplies and taking census information in addition to enforcing the law in the North. St. Roch is world renowned for achieving many firsts, including being the first vessel through the Northwest Passage west to east, the first vessel to navigate the passage in both directions and the first vessel to circumnavigate North America. Inspired by St. Roch, renowned trapper and Inuit leader Fred Carpenter designed the elegant North Star, the ultimate ice vessel used to transport furs and people to and from remote Banks Island. Together, the two iconic ships have helped to solidify Canadian sovereignty in the Arctic and have become symbols of unity among Northern communities. In Sisters of the Ice, Macdonald documents in vivid detail the adventurous histories of these two vessels, as well as the history of the Northern communities in which they gained renown. Detailing daring escapes from dangerous ice conditions to thrilling sea voyages to raucous whaling towns, Macdonald reveals the perilous and often lawless climate in which these vessels operated and the ties of Canadian identity that they helped forge.

R. Bruce Macdonald

About

Books

Join the club