Harrigan

I really enjoy nautical fiction novels that feature ruthless sea captains. There are dozens of them, mostly inspired by Rudyard Kipling's 1897 masterpiece Captain Courageous. Jack London's 1904 thriller The Sea-Wolf is one of my favorites alongside Frank De Felitta's contemporary gem Sea Trial (1980). Another one that I really enjoyed was Max Brand's (real name Frederick Schiller Faust) Luck of the Spindrift (1941), albeit the straight-laced comparison to The Sea-Wolf is valid.

Max Brand is an author who mostly stayed on the western trails of paperback and pulp fiction. He dipped into medical dramas (Dr. Kildare) and swashbuckling historical fiction, but wrote the aforementioned Luck of the Spindrift, capturing that perfect blend of refreshing sea air and tumultuous, grimy ship labor. But, I didn't realize until last week that Brand also wrote nautical fiction much earlier, evident with his novel Harrigan. It first set sail in Railroad Man's Magazine over five issues in November 1918. My version is the 1973 Pocket Books paperback with cover art by Carl Hantman.

A red-headed, impulsive Irish drifter named Harrigan is introduced to readers during a Honolulu brawl outside of a bar. A Scottish man comes to Harrigan's aid, and the two men eventually escape a mob of soldiers and police. Later, Harrigan is looking for a free sea passage and spots a nearby ship. On board is the man who helped him earlier, although this time his help isn't offered. The man is Captain McTee, and he immediately wants Harrigan thrown off the ship. But, Harrigan unfortunately maintains passage on the ship and is discovered as a stowaway. Big mistake. 

McTee tells Harrigan that he will break him down – spiritually and physically. This involves a torturous series of hard labor in which Harrigan must scrub the ship's floors by day and then shovel coal all night. The idea is that Harrigan's hands will be soft from the water and then ripped to pieces by the shovel handle. As the ruthless labor intensifies, Harrigan's hands nearly fall to pieces. In an effort to free himself, Harrigan challenges McTee to a physical fight, a fight that Harrigan wins. However, in a wild sequence, the ship sinks, and Harrigan escapes a quick retaliation for his actions. He washes up on an island alongside McTee and a beautiful female passenger named Kate. 

On the island, McTee and Harrigan build upon their feud, this time in a quest to not only be the leader of the small trio but also to be Kate's lover. The contest is short-lived when they are rescued by another boat. This is where the majority of the story lies, on board the Heron, commanded by a mysterious and wealthy tyrant named Captain White Henshaw. His treatment of Harrigan is similar to McTee's, only this time fueled by McTee's hostility and anger to punish the Irishman for his actions on the prior ship and the island. Harrigan's only saving grace is a planned mutiny to overthrow Henshaw. But, Harrigan finds himself as a man hated by both the ship's leadership and the very men planning the uprising. 

Harrigan is simply a masterpiece. The psychological and physical struggle between Harrigan and McTee is so compelling. The two are mirror images of strength and conditioning, and have a matched, unwielding love for Kate. Max Brand builds this rivalry, fanning the flames with injections of deep-seated hatred, jealousy, and the corrupting influences of power. Ultimately, this is a novel of human endurance and rivalry, complete with a myriad of outstanding characters and intense action. Some torturous scenes shape Henshaw as a genuine scoundrel – a villain you just love to hate. I was a roller-coaster of emotions concerning McTee and his nefarious intentions. I grew to respect the character nearly as much as Harrigan, a respect that pays huge dividends in the closing pages. Max Brand sets the reader up for a fitting conclusion to this human endurance test. 

Harrigan is a public domain work and available in both physical and digital editions. There are also free audio editions of the novel as well. There's no excuse not to read this one.

Luck of the Spindrift

Although Frederick Schiller Faust (1892-1944) used pseudonyms like Walter Butler, David Manning, Even Evans, and George Baxter, he’s mostly known as Max Brand. As a cornerstone of western-fiction, Faust’s popular western stories and novels as Max Brand have been idolized by genre fans for 100 years. Outside of the genre, Faust (as Brand) authored the Dr. Kildare series as well as a handful of historical swashbuckling novels featuring a character named Tizzo. Also, as Brand, Faust wrote the nautical adventure novel Luck of the Spindrift. It was originally published in 1941, just three years prior to his death during WW2.

In Luck of the Spindrift, readers are introduced to Samuel Culver, a philosopher and graduate from Harvard. In the opening pages, Culver is working a blue-collar job at a shipping warehouse. After being fired by his employer, Culver dwells in his one room San Francisco apartment surrounded by hundreds of books that he’s collected and studied. Later, he runs into a stray dog that has become separated from its owner. Little did Culver know that the dog was about to take him on a nautical journey to the majestic South Seas. 

Asking around about the whereabouts of the dog’s owner, Culver is led to a docked ship called the Spindrift. On board, various crewmen suggest that the dog belongs to a man named Valdez. Before Culver can gain a better understanding of Valdez’s location he’s knocked unconscious and dragged below deck. Awakening hours later, Culver realizes he’s in-route to the South Seas with the criminal crew of the Spindrift. 

Brand’s nautical adventure is mostly spent with Culver befriending some of the crew and later learning to work for Burke, the ship’s devious captain. At 200 pages, three-fourths are spent with simple day-to-day activities on the ship. Authors like Calvin Clements and Hammond Innes can make these occupational details compelling. Unfortunately, Brand’s prose lacks some interesting aspects other than a violent flogging.

Despite Luck of the Spindrift promising high-seas adventure, the narrative is mostly a slow-burn with a lack of real action or a logical story. Often I found myself confused regarding the purpose of Valdez and the purported treasure. If you enjoy nautical adventure, Brand’s novel may be tempting. Buyer beware, there’s not a lot to really absorb or enjoy. Stick with Brand’s well-respected western storytelling instead. 

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