Toteadler.com

Ocean Titans by Daniel Sekulich has become one of my favorite books.  Most books about ships and the sea are either written about the Navy or about Sail boats/Yachting/Crazy People trying to sail to the North Pole in a dingy, not merchant vessel with which I have a much stronger interest.  When I found this book at the local Borders I picked it up right away and then proceeded to read it almost straight through in the course of a few days.  Mr. Sekulich looks at the whole life of a vessel, from the builders to those who operate it, to the last days at the breakers in India.  There is a section in the book about the boat owners which I found interesting because while they are a vital part to the whole effort, they are often sort of brushed over even in the small amount of literature about commercial ships that is out there.  Overall I found the book to be very enlightening and would recommend it to anyone with an interest in commercial ships as the book is written in a way that makes it an excellent starting place for all manner of considerations.