Book Review: Tales of Sea and Shore by Edward Rowe Snow

Tales of Sea and Shore
by Edward Rowe Snow (910.45 Sn6t)

 

Edward Rowe Snow was a master storyteller and prolific writer who devoted most of his life to collecting unusual tales and mysteries of the sea, particularly in the New England area of the United States. This collection of stories has been my favorite so far with stories of horrific events and crimes that took place on ships in the 1600s-1800s along the Atlantic coast. One story involved a duel on Castle Island outside Boston that brought to mind the famous duel between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr. Lt. Robert Massie of Virginia was killed in a duel on Christmas Day by another officer. The officer who killed Massie suddenly disappeared. Years later, a young Edgar Allan Poe was stationed there and asked what had happened to the opponent. The officers there told him that the killer was made drunk and then walled up in a dungeon in the Castle, still alive. Sound familiar? Names and locations were changed, but Poe knew a good story when he heard one. In 1905, workers discovered the skeleton behind a brick wall in a section labeled as the dungeon on old maps of the Castle. This is just one of many stories that fill this book as well as the other titles that our library system still has in the collection. If you are looking for creepy stories with a historical bent, look no further. This is the book for you!

 

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try Boston Bay Mysteries and Other Tales and Incredible Mysteries and Legends of the Sea, also by Edward Rowe Snow.]

 

[ Wikipedia page for Edward Rowe Snow ]

 

Recommended by Kim J.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Service

 

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