The Beckoning Sea

There are two books in this volume. The first, "The Beckoning Sea," is the author's memoir. It consists of short stories and vignettes from a youth dreaming of seeing the world; of being beckoned by the sea. Funny and sad events mesh together to form a picture of seafaring as it once was; of a life style that does not exist any more. There are stories of friendship; losses and madness at sea; the forces of nature: storms and fog, and life in the rough ports of the Baltic coal trade immediately after the war. The long step from that life to that of being an immigrant in New York is included. The second book, "Double Occupancy," is a collection of short stories and musings from various contexts of the author's life. Some are from the sea; some are not, but together they form a whole.