C S Forester's Novel The Ship
In May 1943, well-known British writer C. S. Forester published his novel The Ship. Unlike his more well-known Horatio Hornblower series of sea stories taking place in a far-off the historical setting (the Napoleonic Wars), this was set in the Mediterranean during the actual war going on in the time of writing, and was intended as a tribute to the Royal Navy, engaged at the time in some of the hardest fighting of the war.
The book follows a Royal Navy light cruiser for a single action, in which it successfully contends with superior Italian forces, and including a detailed analysis of many of the men on board and the contribution they made. The author dedicated the book "with the deepest respect to the officers and crew of HMS Penelope".
The action described is based on the Second Battle of Sirte. The actions ascribed in the book to the fictional HMS Artemis are not precisely those of Penelope, but are clearly modeled on them. The book was published before the sinking of Penelope.
Read more about this topic: HMS Penelope (97)
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