{"id":9344,"date":"2023-04-14T13:17:26","date_gmt":"2023-04-14T11:17:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/?p=9344"},"modified":"2023-04-29T09:41:10","modified_gmt":"2023-04-29T07:41:10","slug":"gentleman-ueber-bord-herbert-clyde-lewis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/2023\/04\/gentleman-overboard-herbert-clyde-lewis\/","title":{"rendered":"Gentleman Overboard \u2022 Herbert Clyde Lewis"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

A New York businessman accidentally falls off a ship into the Pacific Ocean, unnoticed. The ship sails on, leaving him behind in the vast expanse of the sea. Completely alone and surrounded by the infinite ocean \u2014 what thoughts go through a man\u2019s mind in such a situation? What happens within him, what crosses his mind? The new mare classic Gentlemen Overboard<\/em> takes this story as its theme. A gripping masterpiece \u2014 or does the book fall short of the expectations raised by its blurb? Let\u2019s find out.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

When it comes to the mare classics, I now pick up every book from this wonderful series without hesitation. Over the years, I\u2019ve read every novel and have never been disappointed. Sometimes readers discover lesser-known works by famous authors, but time and again, mare Verlag also highlights little-known texts by completely unfamiliar writers. Gentlemen Overboard<\/em> is such a book \u2014 first published in 1937 and never before translated into German.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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With the mare classics, I know that they are not just simple classics \u2014 the sea is always part of them. And it appears in all its multifaceted diversity, expressed in ever-changing ways, yet always capturing those characteristic nuances that belong uniquely to the ocean. That\u2019s truly remarkable, especially considering how consistently this has worked across so many books over so many years. This book is no exception: when you read it, you can feel the sea between the lines \u2014 and in this novel, of course, often right at the surface.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

When I first received the book and held it in my hands, I was a little disappointed by its appearance. It does, of course, have the usual high-quality production \u2014 thread binding, linen cover, slipcase, and careful design. Yet, in terms of color scheme and its very simple, Art Deco\u2013inspired style, I would place it visually toward the back of the series, compared to the other beautiful volumes. I was also disappointed by its length: the actual story spans only 153 pages, which, with the additional blank pages between chapters, feels even shorter.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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When I picked up the book, I wasn\u2019t really in the mood to read and did so halfheartedly that evening \u2014 just intending to glance at a few pages before going to bed. But I didn\u2019t put it down again. I was quickly so captivated by the story that I absolutely had to find out how it ended. That kind of effect rarely happens to me \u2014 and almost never with such short works.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Lewis writes in clear, often concise sentences that faithfully convey the situation and the thoughts of his protagonist, Standish. It\u2019s therefore easy for the reader to slip into the story and follow what Standish experiences, feels, and thinks as he floats in the open sea. Lewis\u2019s short novel is characterized by extensive use of free indirect discourse, and together with brief, precise sentences that could easily stem from everyday thought, everything the protagonist experiences feels entirely believable. At the same time, a certain irony recurs throughout, and Standish\u2019s character remains deeply rooted in his sociocultural background, which creates a sense of distance for the reader. The result is a balanced emotional response \u2014 neither too empathetic nor indifferent. On one hand, we are horrified, can vividly imagine the situation, and wonder what it must feel like to be alone in the middle of the ocean, filled with both hope and hopelessness. On the other hand, Standish is not a character one grows particularly fond of.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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The entire novel takes place at sea, depicting how Standish spends his hours there. Through flashbacks and brief episodes, the reader learns what happened in the past \u2014 what Standish\u2019s life and circumstances were and are like, what kind of man he is \u2014 and also gets a glimpse of what happens aboard the ship from which he fell. In doing so, Lewis paints an interesting portrait of American society in the 1930s. The protagonist is a businessman who, in his life, personality, and circumstances, is utterly ordinary \u2014 a dull, average, and insignificant man whose behavior and thinking are deeply shaped by the values of his time. I believe Lewis deliberately made him a stereotype of that era and social class. What\u2019s fascinating and well executed is how this very type manifests in his thinking \u2014 and how clearly those thoughts and behaviors emerge even in a desperate life-or-death situation.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The ship\u2019s crew \u2014 the captain, the first officer, and the few other passengers aboard the primarily cargo vessel \u2014 serve as a mirror of the society of the time. It\u2019s evident that Lewis thought carefully about this and intentionally uses them to critique that society \u2014 for example, by placing the always-suited, uptight businessman opposite a simple farmer traveling the world, or introducing a hypocritical married couple. I also find the way Lewis arranges the circumstances very well done \u2014 even if it might appear contrived, it feels completely plausible. He describes the small coincidences that ultimately lead to the situation forming the novel\u2019s central theme.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

As a reader, one is captivated by the harrowing moments at sea, and the more one reads, the more one wants to know what will happen to Standish. You hope for him, yet you\u2019re not too distraught at the thought that rescue might never come. From today\u2019s perspective, the novel is even more intriguing because you inevitably compare yourself to Standish and wonder how you would react in his place.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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After finishing the book, I still consider it one of the less visually appealing volumes in the series \u2014 yet I\u2019m once again amazed at how perfectly the book design reflects the story within. The gray of the cover evokes the image of the sea, flat and motionless, as I imagine it stretching endlessly before you \u2014 while Lewis describes the sea at sunrise on that fateful morning as \u201cunusually stingy.\u201d At the same time, that gray tone beautifully mirrors the colorless character of the protagonist. The image on the cover shows the ship, the Arabella<\/em>, sailing toward the rising sun, away from Standish. The Art Deco style suits the New York businessman perfectly. The design captures the essence of the story brilliantly.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Herbert Clyde Lewis was born in 1909 in New York, the son of Russian-Jewish immigrants, and seems to have led a rather restless life. He worked as a reporter and screenwriter, lived in Shanghai, and died at the age of just forty-one. Reportedly, he struggled with alcoholism, drug addiction, and chronic debt, as he lived beyond his means. The afterword once again offers fascinating background information about the author.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Conclusion:<\/strong> I found Gentlemen Overboard<\/em> immensely gripping \u2014 I devoured it in a single evening and simply had to know what would happen to the protagonist. The way Lewis portrays the mind of a man confronted with the desperate situation of being lost alone at sea, and how he links that inner world to the cultural and social context, is truly masterful. Once again, the beautifully produced volume is perfectly in tune with its content \u2014 even if, with its gray tones, it\u2019s not as visually appealing as others in the series. With its modest length, it can easily be read in one evening \u2014 a highly worthwhile read that portrays the sea from yet another unique perspective, reminding readers how small and lost a human being can be amid the vast indifference of nature.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Book information:<\/strong> Gentlemen Overboard<\/em> \u2022 Herbert Clyde Lewis \u2022 mare Verlag \u2022 176 pages \u2022 ISBN 9783866486966<\/p>\r\n\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A New York businessman accidentally falls off a ship into the Pacific Ocean, unnoticed. The ship sails on, leaving him behind in the vast expanse of the sea. Completely alone and surrounded by the infinite ocean \u2014 what thoughts go through a man\u2019s mind in such a situation? What happens within him, what crosses his … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Gentleman Overboard \u2022 Herbert Clyde Lewis”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9355,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"slim_seo":{"title":"Gentleman \u00fcber Bord \u2022 Herbert Clyde Lewis - lesestunden","description":"Ein New Yorker Gesch\u00e4ftsmann f\u00e4llt unbemerkt von einem Schiff in den Pazifik, das Schiff f\u00e4hrt weiter und l\u00e4sst ihn inmitten des weiten Ozeans zur\u00fcck. V\u00f6llig al"},"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[10,20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9344","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-classics","category-reviews"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/gentlemen_ueber_bord_lewis_1.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9344","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9344"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9344\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9355"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9344"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9344"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9344"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}