With Beatty off Jutland. A Romance of the Great Sea Fight, Westerman. Percy F. Published by Blackie & Son Limited, London, Circa 1920. 12mo up to 7½” tall., 284pp. with six black and white illustrated plates by Frank Gillett. Black cloth boards with illustration front and spine. Tanning to endpapers, light spine roll. In very good condition. Set against the backdrop of the North Sea during WW1, the story follows the H.M. torpedo-boat destroyer Calder as it braves treacherous waters.
Percy Francis Westerman (1876 – 1959) was a prolific author of children’s literature, many of his books are adventures with military themes. His first book for boys, ‘A Lad of Grit’, was published in 1908. In the same year, Baden-Powell founded the Scouting movement, which strongly influenced many of Westerman’s books – he was a particularly keen supporter of the Sea Scouts. During the 1930s Westerman was voted the most popular author of stories for boys. He published at least 174 books; his books sold over one and a half million copies in his lifetime. See pictures for additional available titles by Percy Francis Westerman.
