The Wind-Jammers

Thornton Jenkins HainsProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.6

Word count: 363K words
Chapters: 37

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.The Wind-Jammers by T. Jenkins HainsAuthor: Hains, T. Jenkins (Thornton Jenkins), 1866-,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Aug 6, 2017

Editor's review

T. Jenkins Hains's The Wind-Jammers is an English sea novel set in the age of sail; the title's "wind-jammers" refers to sailing ships that rely on the wind. The author wrote extensively on maritime subjects, and this work continues his forte for scenes at sea and descriptions of shipboard life. The plot revolves around the people and events of a sailing voyage and has the typical character of sea adventure fiction of its era: the crew's daily life, the perils of the sea, and the relationship between people and their ship. As a public-domain eBook from Project Gutenberg, its main barriers are language and the appeal of its subject—the English original is friendlier to readers familiar with nautical terms, while general readers can take it as an old-fashioned sea novel and savor the atmosphere and narrative pace of the sailing age. It is not suited to readers seeking a modern suspense structure or tightly designed plotting, nor to those expecting a popular account of nautical technology. The best approach is to relax demands for tight plotting, focus on the details of life at sea and the flavor of the era, and use a short glossary of nautical terms as an aid.

Who it's for

A good fit for

English-language readers who enjoy classic sea adventure novels and are interested in the age of sail
Learners who want to build nautical vocabulary through an English-language novel
Readers studying American popular sea fiction or Hains's works
Readers who prefer slow-paced, atmosphere-driven narratives

Not a good fit for

Readers hoping for modern, fast-paced suspense or thrilling plots
Readers who need systematic nautical technical knowledge rather than a novel
Beginners with limited English reading ability who are unfamiliar with old-fashioned narrative language

Reading tips

Read the opening chapters first to get a feel for the narrative pace and language style, then decide whether to read closely or extensively.
Prepare a short glossary of sailing-ship parts and nautical terms, and consult it whenever ship gear is named.
Take separate notes on descriptions of scenes at sea to appreciate how the author uses detail to create the atmosphere of the sailing age.
If the English original is difficult, read a summary of the story first and then return to the text to ease the burden of comprehension.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

What does the word "Wind-Jammers" mean?

It refers to sailing ships, especially large vessels that rely on wind power, and has a colloquial nautical flavor. The title uses it to indicate that the story takes place in the era of sailing-ship transport and to signal the book's maritime setting.

Is this novel suitable for learning English?

It can serve as extensive reading material, but not as an introductory textbook. It is an early English novel, and its narrative language and nautical vocabulary are difficult for beginners. Readers with intermediate or higher reading ability and an interest in maritime subjects will find it smoother going.

Do I need to know about sailing before reading it?

Systematic knowledge is not required, but some basic sailing terminology will noticeably reduce obstacles. The many descriptions of ship gear and operations may seem unfamiliar to readers unaccustomed to the sea; a glossary or looking things up as you read can help.

How does it differ from modern sea adventure novels?

It is closer to the tradition of old-fashioned sea fiction, emphasizing the atmosphere of life at sea and the details of ships rather than dense twists or strong suspense. Readers expecting the pace of a modern adventure novel may find it slow; with adjusted expectations, its sense of period comes through more clearly.

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About the author

Thornton Jenkins Hains Author · American · 1866–1953

Thornton Jenkins Hains (1866–1953) was an American writer of sea fiction, born in Washington, D.C. He went to sea as a cabin boy at the age of twelve and later obtained master's certificates in both the United States and Britain, and his experience at sea became the foundation of his writing. Between 1894 and 1908 he published more than ten works of maritime fiction, including Mr. Trunnell, Mate of the Ship Pirate, The Black Barque, The Wind-Jammers, The Chief Mate's Yarns, and Richard Judkins' Wooing. His novels, mostly concerned with ocean voyages, shipwrecks, and life aboard ship, are tightly plotted and rich in precise nautical detail, with a marked realism of the sea. In later years he also published The White Ghost of Disaster under the pen name Mayn Clew Garnett.