Mr. Midshipman Easy

Classic naval fiction, said to have been inspired by the dashing Lord Cochrane’s adventures as a midshipman in the Napoleonic Wars

Set sail with Midshipman Jack Easy, the original nautical hero, as he embarks on a career in the Royal Navy, a new life full of spine-tingling danger, outrageous adventure, and humorous goings-on. Jack is the unfortunate son of a self-taught philosopher who has a lot to learn on the decks of a ship of war - but learn them he does, and he proves his courage, honor, and cleverness to boot.

As you embark with Jack on a tour of the high seas, you’ll be following in the footsteps of Herman Melville, Joseph Conrad, Virginia Woolf, C.S. Forester, Patrick O’Brian, and countless other lovers of nautical fiction through the years who found in Marryat the key to a whole new world. Lord Cochrane himself spoke highly of Marryat, calling him ＂brave, zealous, intelligent - and even thoughtful.＂

Captain Frederick Marryat (1792-1848) was an actual nineteenth-century British naval hero who lived a saga worthy of the novels of C.S. Forester and Patrick O’Brian. He survived fifty naval battles on the crack frigate Imperieuse under Lord Cochrane - the real-life model for Horatio Hornblower and Jack Aubrey. In addition to plenty of cannonfire, battle strategy, peril, and passion - liberally sprinkled with wit and fine turns of phrase - Marryat’s real-life naval experiences lend his novels a truly remarkable authenticity. George D. Jepson, editorial director for McBooks Press, previously worked as a journalist and corporate communicator. As a freelance writer and editor, he was a regular contributor to WoodenBoat magazine and various other publications. He is the author of Sailing the Sweetwater Seas: Wooden Boats and Ships on the Great Lakes, 1817-1940 and the co-author of Crash Boat: Rescue and Peril in the Pacific During World War II. Jepson worked in the maritime book trade for more than two decades and founded Quarterdeck, a journal dedicated to celebrating maritime literature and art. He holds degrees in English and history, as well as an MBA. Jepson and his wife, Amy, live in Kalamazoo, Michigan.