Sonnie-Boy’s People
Nine stories make up this 1913 collection from Charles Scribner’s Sons, gathering tales of engineers, fishermen, and hard-handed seafaring men whose work carries them across salt water. The opening piece follows Greg Welkie, a young government engineer building coastal fortifications in the Caribbean, who turns down a fortune and a life of ease to stay faithful to his post. The other tales range from Gloucester fishing runs and anchor-watch yarns to a wartime battle-cruise, each drawn from Connolly’s firsthand knowledge of boats and the crews who sail them. He wrote from experience rather than romance, and Joseph Conrad praised him as the best sea-story writer in America. Readers who like plain, weather-beaten fiction about duty, danger, and life on the water will find real substance here.
