"In 1921 15 year-old George Lyle Purvis got a job in the Durham coal pit managed by his father. It was not a life he took to, but it was one that most male members of his family were resigned to. Before long, however, an advertisement caught his eye which offered him the chance to see the world. And so, George became a sailor and did indeed travel around the globe, before settling in Plymouth with his wife and four children. In this book, his eldest son Derry looks back at his father's long life and distinguished career, through the ships he served on and the photos he took along the way."--Provided by the publisher.