The History of the North Deal Walmer and Kingsdowne Lifeboats by Jeff Morris published by the author at £2.50 (including post and packing)A new book by this prolific chronicler of lifeboats station histories - this time covering three stations which have dealt with casualties near the notorious Goodwin Sands of the southern coast of Kent.

Only the first to be established, Walmer, is still an operational RNLI lifeboat station and this book covers its activities from its inception in 1856 right through to the present day.

Walmer may be the sole survivor, but it too has seen considerable changes during its lifetime. It was closed from 1912 to 1927 and then became an inshore lifeboat station in 1990, with the withdrawal of the offshore lifeboat. At this time anAtlantic21 joined the D class, which had been there since the earliest days of inshore lifeboats in 1964.

Happily the classic boathouse survives on the beach - sympathetically extended at the seaward end to accommodate the two inshore lifeboats.

The two now-defunct stations joined the fray a little later after it had been found that the Walmer boat could have difficulty in reaching some casualties on the sands - the North Deal boat a little to the north in 1865 and Kingsdowne to the south just a year later in 1866.

The decision to put a motor lifeboat at Walmer, the most suitable situation to launch the new boat, sounded the death knell for the two nearby stations, Kingsdowne succumbing in 1927 and North Deal following in 1933.

All of the events are covered in detail in Jeff Morris's book, along with some of the more notable services carried out by the three stations and all illustrated with contemporary photographs.

The History of the North Deal, Walmer and Kingsdowne Lifeboats can be obtained from Jeff Morris at 14 Medina Road, Coventry CV6 5JB for £2.50 including post and packing.

The books NOT available Please see given in good bookseller author,The History of the Stromness Lifeboats by Jeff Morris published by the author at €2.50 (including post and packing) This second edition of Jeff Morris's detailed history of the various Stromness lifeboats and lifeboat houses builds on his original work to bring the story right up to date. The new edition now covers the arrival of the new Severn class in late 1998 and her naming in mid-1999.

Stromness forms part of the lifeboat cover for the wild and often treacherous waters around the Orkneys, and the accounts of services carried out by lifeboats stationed there should leave no one in any doubt of the kind of conditions which can be encountered there. Justa little to the south on a smaller island lies Longhope, etched into the public memory by the lifeboat disaster there in 1969 when all eight crew members lost their lives when the lifeboat capsized.

reviewed here are from the RNLI.

either the address text or contact a bookseller quoting the title and ISBNFor the yachtsman Heavy Weather Sailing by Peter Bruce published by Adlard Coles Nautical at £30 ISBN 0-7136- 4425-7 This fifth edition of Adlard Coles' classic book, heavily revised by Peter Bruce with the cooperation of many who knew the original author, should be compulsory reading for any passagemaking yachtsman.

Most of us fervently cope that we will never experience conditions like those depicted (and reading about them will no doubt make us even more careful to avoid them) yet a knowledge of theory and practice may still come in handy one day.

Thoroughly up to date and packed with useful information and anecdotes.

Go on... frighten yourself! HEAVY Vl AI11IR SAILINGThe Happisburgh Lifeboats by Nicholas Leach published by the Norfolk and Suffolk Research Group at £2.50 ISBN 09522799 3 2 Nicholas Leach's small volume on the lifeboats of Happisburgh takes in not only the RNLI station at Happisburgh itself but also an earlier RNLI station at Mundesley a little to the north (closed in 1895 and reopened in 1972 by an independent rescue service) and Bacton which was also closed - this time as long ago as 1882.

Happisburgh (pronounced Hazeborough, more in keeping with the Haisbro Sands nearby) was also closed for a considerable time. As motor lifeboats became more common they could cover extended areas and made small stations like Happisburgh redundant. Hence from 1926 until 1965 casualties off Happisburgh were handled from Cromer.

It was the leisure revolution of the late '50s and early '60s which led to a new need for a lifeboat in the area and as a result one of the new D class inflatable lifeboats came to the area in 1965.

Housed first in a temporary building on the site of one of the earliest boathouses and, since 1988, in a more substantial structure, Happisburgh's new generation of lifeboats have been busy ever since.

Copies of The Happisburgh Lifeboats can be obtained from the Norfolk and Suffolk Research Group at 4 Paines Orchard, Cheddington, Bedfordshire LU7 OSN Lifeboat Celebrations by Nicholas Leach One of the highlights of the 175th Anniversary Celebrations of the RNLI this past year was undoubtedly the lifeboat flotilla held at Poole on 19 June - during the 1999 International Lifeboat Conference.

Lifeboats from many European countries - current and historic - took part and Nicholas Leach has produced a souvenir booklet in almost record time.

Here are details and photographs of all of the lifeboats taking part - together with a few which were not part of the flotilla itself but played a part in the proceedings.

Copies can be obtained from Nicholas Leach at 7 High Trees, Birmingham B201HS at £3.50 plus 50p postage and packing..