Cynical librarians who gave this volume only a superficial glance might be inclined to dismiss it as a coffee‐table book, but they would be wrong. The good reputation of the author for scholarship, and of the publisher for well‐illustrated books, combined with the imprimatur of the National Maritime Museum, promise a high‐class product.
It is indeed true that much attention has been given to design, with the result that some of the hundreds of illustrations (nearly all in colour) are really too small to show details, but they are all well chosen to represent their subjects. Some are contemporary depictions, some are modern impressions, and others are photographs of models or, wherever possible, of surviving or reconstructed ships. The text comprises a historical account of the development of ships from prehistoric times to the present, and from all parts of the world, interrupted here and there by pages depicting typical vessels of each period and pointing out their most significant features. All kinds of ships are featured: merchant ships, warships, fishing vessels and pleasure craft. Particularly important ships, for instance the Vasa, merit a two‐page spread. The main text is supplemented by numerous boxes and sidebars giving special information and key dates. It must be admitted that this method of presentation does sometimes tend to obscure the chronological arrangement of the narrative.
Written as it is for the general reader, the book is provided with a glossary of technical terms, perhaps not as long as the complexity of the subject deserves, although many of the captions to the illustrations serve to supplement it. The index is adequate, but there is no list of works for further reading.
In a book so filled with information (yet moderately priced) it is difficult to pick out the most remarkable items; but to show the thoroughness of the author's command of his subject, including significant facts which even shipping enthusiasts might not be aware of, consider for instance his revelation that in the late eighteenth century, an alteration in the method of making rope served to double its strength. Equally remarkable are the illustrations, of which one might highlight the seventeenth‐century “pop‐up book” wherein an early naval architect thus depicted the hull forms of the ships he had seen. With so many facts (and so many editors) it is not surprising that there are a few minor lapses, notably the illustration on page 224, which is said to show a paddle frigate but is clearly a screw steamer. The book is stated to be a new edition of one first published in 2004, but nothing, either in the text or the illustrations, suggests that it has been changed since that date. Publishers should take pity on librarians and end this practice. Nevertheless, if a library could afford to purchase only one reference book on ships, this should be it.
