Charles Nordhoff (2) (1830–1901)

Great book and the observations about communism are spot on. The reason ibleave off a star is that towards the end, the examples become less descriptive and thorough in their analysis.

In the preface the author says his intent is to disabuse young boys of the notion that life at sea is a glamorous adventure. The chapter subheadings indicate that he probably succeeded. The author also wrote a book titled, "Man-of-War Life".

Facs. rpt. of edition published New York : Harper, 1875.

Okay. So I read this ALL the way through. It is quite interesting from a comparative religion / utopianist society point of view. I thought it was pretty good, especially where it describes such groups as the Shakers and various German-based communistic societies. Plus, it has some excellent illustrations of the various societies' villages, living quarters, etc. It definitely deserves more than 2 stars, so i will give it :