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Richard McKenna

The Sand Pebbles (Bluejacket Books) Paperback – May 1, 2001

by Richard McKenna (Author)

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Recommended reading as part of the Chief of Naval Operation's Professional Reading Program!

This now-classic novel by Richard McKenna enjoyed great critical acclaim and commercial success when it was first published in 1962. The winner of the coveted Harper Prize, it was on the New York Times bestseller list for seven months and was made into a popular motion picture that continues to be shown on television today.

Set in China on the eve of revolution, the book tells the story of an old U.S. Navy gunboat, the San Pablo, and her dedicated crew of "Sand Pebbles" on patrol in the far reaches of the Yangtze River to show the flag and protect American missionaries and businessmen from bandits. The plot revolves around a newcomer to the boat, machinist's mate Jake Holman, a maverick and loner who dramatically alters the lives of the crew and the people they have come to save. A faithful engine-room coolie and a pretty young missionary help Holman gain an appreciation of China and its people and discover a world of humanity and promise he has never known. It is a story of old loyalties versus new values, of violence and tenderness, tragedy and humor, and it engages the reader from the first line to the last. This new paperback edition includes in informative introduction by Robert Shenk, written for the Naval Institute's Classics of Naval Literature edition in 1984.

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Product details

Series: Bluejacket Books
Paperback: 624 pages
Publisher: Naval Institute Press; Revised edition (May 1, 2001)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 9781557504463
ISBN-13: 978-1557504463
ASIN: 1557504466
Product Dimensions: 5.9 x 1.5 x 9 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 170 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #598,516 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #2841 in Military Historical Fiction
- #5791 in War & Military Action Fiction (Books)
- #6695 in War Fiction (Books)

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J. E. Dowdle

Still One of the Very Best!

December 15, 2018

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

I read this book for the first time about 40 years ago. I was maybe 20 at the time, and it was my introduction to naval fiction, and through that, naval history. It lit a spark that has never died, and lead me to read so many great works of fact and fiction. I finally decided it was time to revisit it, and I have to say, it was even better than I remembered. I've read a lot of the best books in the English language in both naval fiction and naval non-fiction, and this is one of the very best!

7 people found this helpful

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Chollie

Good View of Historical Events

November 21, 2018

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

'The Sand Pebbles' is an historical fiction which portrays events and characters in China's 1926 uprising. I think Richard McKenna gives a very FAIR look at history and I cannot see McKenna’s account of these events as revisionist in ANY way whatsoever. McKenna pretty much called it like it was; he was, after all, in 1930’s China. All fictional characters notwithstanding, the novel gives a good representation of actual events. (Read the book ‘The Sailor’s Homer’ by Dennis Noble to read the bio of McKenna’s life and Naval service).

The movie by the same name, was excellent, but gives a slightly skewed slant to McKenna's novel, putting the protagonist Holman into deserter’s territory near the end of the film, as he tells his skipper, "Shove off, Captain". This is one departure from the book; not in line with the actual plot line of McKenna’s written work.

The movie is quite well made though and was able to capture a lot of the period quite accurately. I'd recommend anyone who’s seen the movie to also read McKenna's novel.

4 people found this helpful

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James J. Bloom

A BRILLIANT, ENGROSSING MASTERPIECE

October 20, 2014

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Having seen the 1966 movie with Steve McQueen, Candice Bergen and Richard Crenna, It took me far too long to get the novel. After almost 50 years, I regret not having read it much earlier. It is quite simply one of the finest novels I've ever read. I rank it on a par with the greats--of Hemingway, Faulkner, Wolfe, Fitzgerald, Styron et. al. It's hard to believe that this is McKenna's FIRST novel and that he didn't start his writing career until relatively late in life--his mid-40s. It is quite regrettable that this was his ONLY novel before his untimely death at age 51 in 1964. Not only did he live the life of the Yangtze Patrol gunboat sailors he so meticulously and compassionately describes, but he has brought to life the chaos of Revolutionary China on the eve of the Kuomintang revolution that wracked this fascinating land for 15 years before the Japanese invasion and culminated in the Nationalist/Maoist split that sent Chiang kai Shek to rule a rump republic in Taiwan, with Mao and he glaring threateningly across the straits. It is sometimes forgotten that for a while Chiang was the arch-enemy of the American, British and Europeans who enjoyed "treaty privileges" thanks to the cannons of their roving river gunboats. Of course he became an ally of convenience when the Red Scare dominated American attitudes towards the Far East. The roles and attitudes of the missionaries, at times in conflict with the sailors and marines who perforce defended them, are portrayed with finesse and nuance.

Besides the wonderful word pictures of China and its people during these turbulent years, McKenna has crafted a finely honed naval adventure tale, without the facile bravado of so many military authors. More importantly, the characters he draws, especially that of the tragically fated Jake Holman and his might-have-been life companion Shirley Eckert are skilfully depicted, not to mention the various minor characters, especially Frenchy Burgoyne and the conflicted Chinese-American Mailly. This novel is not only a wonderful sociological study of the American gunboat Navy of the 1920s and the conflicts wracking revolutionary China but works on every level--character evolution, plot development and deeper meaning. It is a novel one can read and re-read, evoking new meaning at each.

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I saw the movie years ago and loved it. So something triggered me to read the ...

October 20, 2016

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

I saw the movie years ago and loved it. So something triggered me to read the book. And boy am I glad I did. The movie left so much out, due to time constraints of course, that I really enjoyed and that added so much more color and interaction between the characters. I think anyone in the navy or anyone that works with engines/machinery would really enjoy this book. I wasn't in the navy or a machinist, but I enjoyed the way Jake thought about the engine, cared for it and loved it like a friend. Excellent read!

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Pamela S. Simone

Good Read

August 15, 2014

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

It was a bit slow in the beginning but it picked up the pace quickly. I found it enlightening from the historical content. One thing that I found interesting was that after reading The Rape of Nanking that the Chinese did the same thing just years before the Japanese. I did have to do some searching on the internet to clarify some historical background.
I have to admit that I felt more sympathy for Jake than I would have felt if I were not envisioning Steve McQueen's face.
One thing that I felt McKenna did well was to write the rougher parts of life as a sailor but still impart tenderness in Jake, Frenchy, Maily, and Shirley.
Keep in mind the perspective is more from the westerners' points of view but there is empathy with the Chinese trying to break the yoke of imperialism and regain independence.
While McKenna did not attempt to resolve or pretend to have the solution to the problems inherent in China or with the results of foreign control, he does try to show attitudes of the period and give voice to all sides.

12 people found this helpful

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tef1303

Read the book...

May 15, 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

The book is even better than the movie and the movie was a historic success and breakthrough for Steve McQueen. This work links the reader to a world long gone and a time long forgotten. To read this book is to understand a small part of the complicated relationship between the US and China. We DID behave like a colonizing power, even if we imputed the noblest motives to our doing so. I would love to see a high quality reader tackle this book for Audible; until then read the book!

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