Dennis Puleston was born in Essex in 1905, and messing about in boats in the Thames Estuary was in his blood at an early age, and he also became a keen observer of the birds of the Essex mudflats. He studied biology and naval architecture at London University, but before he could convert these assets into a steady career he was seized by the lure of a sea adventure. In 1931 he set sail for the West Indies. It was the beginning of a somewhat haphazard but nevertheless absorbing saga, which included, en route, an attempt not totally unsuccessful - to develop a derelict coconut plantation in the Caribbean. The colourful account of these adventures, 'Blue Water Vagabond', was published in England and America in 1939, and was a big popular success, reprinted several times in the subsequent decades. Last in print in 1995 this new long-awaited edition recaptures the finest travel story-telling anew.