The boats of the "Glen Carrig"

The boats of the "Glen Carrig" (Engl. The Boats of the "Glen Carrig" ) is the first novel by William Hope Hodgson . The "uncanny sea story" appeared in 1907.

The narrator is the noble James Winterstraw, who was a passenger on the Glen Carrig, which ran onto a reef in the early 18th century and sank. Under the leadership of the huge boatswain, a small group of survivors rescues themselves on an eerie island. At night they are tormented by plaintive noises. Strange creatures - half snail, half human - hunt exhausted sailors.

The island is surrounded over long stretches by an almost impenetrable carpet of tang, in which giant crabs and octopuses hide. Several ships have become entangled in the thick undergrowth. One night the survivors of the Glen Carrig discover light on one of the ships believed to be abandoned. It is soon possible to establish contact with those trapped who have been trapped in the seaweed for seven years.

With the help of a roughly crafted kite, a rope is stretched to the stuck ship and this is pulled into the open in days of work. The boatswain's group has to repetitively fend off bitter attacks by the snail men. The giant crabs also attack men. Eventually the ship is pulled into clear water and all necessary repairs are carried out. After a last attack by the snail creatures, the deadly island can be left for good.

Despite considerable weaknesses in the structure, the story captivates with a convincing description of the struggle for survival of the castaways. Hodgson, who himself went to sea for years, is on safe ground here and has little trouble pulling the reader into the action through a detailed and authentic narrative style.

literature

• Voice in the night. Eerie Sea Tales by William Hope Hodgson, Insel Verlag 1970.