• AH At Sea, a catch of true and tall stories trawled by writer and broadcaster Libby Purves, has been published by Fontana to mark the 160th anniversary of the RNLI, a milestone reached on March 4 this year. Here can be found all the delight of a good after dinner anecdote, with that refreshing chuckle at the end which will do you a power of good. Turn one page, and then the next, and I doubt whether you will be able to resist the temptation to read just one more. . . .

The section entitled 'Run for Your Lifeboat' is, of course, fascinating. Did you know, for instance, that Aldeburgh lifeboat was once nearly airborne on the wing of a Lancaster bomber? Or that double gold medallist Dick Evans (who else?) on his first service as coxswain of Moelfre lifeboat rescued a cow which two weeks later gave birth to a calf which a year later was awarded a champion's prize at the London Smithfield Show? It is not perhaps surprising that lifeboatmen and members of the Royal and Merchant services should have a ditty bag full of good sea stories to tell, but to their salty tales are added those of bishops, members of Parliament of various persuasions, writers, actors and broadcasters with, for good measure, contributions from at least one famous musician, one famous vet and one famous mountaineer. And so it goes on.

They must be right when they say we are a seafaring people! There is a great temptation to quote from such a collection. Perhaps just one brief sample? What about this little gem from Dr Ronald Hope, director of The Marine Society? 'Winston Churchill was an Elder Brother of Trinity House. Shortly after the First World War he appeared at Versailles wearing the cap and jacket which are peculiar to the Elder Brethren when dressed for official occasions.

Clemenceau asked what uniform he was wearing and Churchill is said to have replied, in somewhat inadequate French, "Je suis un frere nine de la Trinite." "Man Dieu!" exclaimed Clemenceau.

"Quelle influence!" ' Libby Purves gave her editorial services free, gleefully acknowledging that she welcomed the chance to help the lifeboats without having to rattle a collecting box in the rain (a thing she and her husband Paul Heiney have both often done). All the stories were donated and Mike Peyton and Punch cartoonists did their share by providing illustrations free of charge. Thus all royalties will be given to the RNLI.

All At Sea is available at bookshops price £1.95, or by mail order from RNLI Trading, West Quay Road, Poole, Dorset, BH15 1HZ, price £1.95 plus 50p packing and postage.—J.D. • A Day with a Lifeboatman (Wayland Publishing, £3.95) is the most recent in Wayland's successful A Day in the Life series, aimed at 5-13 year olds and particularly non-readers, young or reluctant readers, as well as children of average abilities. The 54 black and white photographs in strip-cartoon style with a simple caption in large type, as well as a main text, tell the story of a single working day in the life of Brian Brown, fisherman and crew member of Angle lifeboat. The story is interesting and informative, carrying complete details of a lifeboat rescue. The book is written by Martin Cavaney, a freelance writer and professional photographer.

—G.P.

• In The Story of the Staithes and Runswick Lifeboats, the latest of Jeff Morris's books, his meticulous research into the histories of the stations and in obtaining such a large and varied collection of photographs is again evident.

Runswick station operated from 1866 to 1978 and Staithes from 1875 to 1922 and again from 1928 to 1938 before the two stations were amalgamated and an Altantic 21 rigid inflatable lifeboat was allocated in 1978. In the foreword to the book, Mr J. C. James, the station honorary secretary, writes: 'The present situation represents a new dimension and illustrates how the RNLI keeps up to date and uses modern technology to full advantage in the cause of saving life at sea.' Certainly Jeff Morris's growing collection of books will provide history students with faithful records of the changes and trends in the lifeboat service, generally. The Story of the Staithes and Runswick Lifeboats is available from Mrs Peggy Theaker, Cardyff, Fairfield Road, Staithes, Near Saltburn, Cleveland TS13 5BA, price 75p plus 25p packing and postage.

Having now accepted the appointment of honorary archivist of the Lifeboat Enthusiasms' Society, it is to be hoped that Jeff Morris will still find time to continue with his valuable series of books.—H.D.

• The Calculator Afloat by Captain Henry Shufeldt and Kenneth Newcomer (Adlard Coles, Granada, £8.95) is not for lifeboatmen, nor for weekend sailors, who will seldom require to use linear regression methods for statistical analysis or a set of observations, or compute the meridional parts for a thousand-mile loxodrome—but it is interesting.

The use of the calculator for sight-reduction has certainly come to stay and several methods are presented in this book, but I wonder sometimes if it is necessarily a good idea to do so many chart-table problems with the calculator, slick and quick though it may be, rather than by geometry on the chart where one has the inestimable benefit of a visual presentation of the problem in which a fatal error is unmistakeable.

There is an equally interesting appendix at the end of the book by A. T.

Thornton, giving uses of the calculator in sailing races. These include an algebraic expression three inches long for computing apparent wind speed without which the writer suggests that it would be impossible to choose the right sail.—K.M.

• Did I know a boy whose ambition it was to become a naval officer I should give him Eraser of North Cape by Richard Humble (Routledge and Kegan Paul, £14.95) and The Death of the Scharnhorst by John Winton (Anthony Bird, £9.95) not so much for the light they throw on naval history of the time as for their portrayal of Admiral of the Fleet Lord Fraser, a man who possessed the quality of leadership to an unusually high degree.

While Fraser of North Cape is a full biography of Bruce Fraser The Death of The Scharnhorst concentrates on the Battle of North Cape on December 26, 1943, planned by Admiral Fraser and executed under his command. In both books Lord Fraser emerges as a quiet man of immense moral stature, professional wisdom and ability who was also a man of understanding, consideration and simple kindness. He was a seaman's seaman, loved and respected by those over whom he had command. There is much of great value to learn from his philosophy of life.—J.D.

Dr and Mrs R. Yorke have donated the proceeds from their book Britain's First Lifeboat Station—Formby, to the RNLI widows and dependants fund. It amounts to a splendid £1,100..