The Sword and Laser discussion

I like the time period of the Ewing section of Cloud Atlas. I seem to remember watching some Horatio Hornblower shows when I was younger and enjoyed them. But, I'll admit that I have not read any of the books. I have read Robinson Crusoe a long time ago. I just downloaded The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne as something to read in between hoping for the best. Is there anything out there all your well-read folks would suggest? Even better if it was something that might advanced reader tween boys could read too.

C.S. Forster's Horatio Hornblower books
Patrick O'Brian (Master and Commander)

Not is the same era but still great "sea stories":
Captains Courageous by Rudyard Kipling
R. L. Stevenson (Treasure Island & Kidnapped are favorites)
The Sea Wolf by Jack London

-more advanced reading:
Joseph Conrad
Herman Melville

I think the baroque cycle by Neal Stephenson ( starting with Quicksilver has a similar vibe, excellent books

Billy Budd, Sailor by Herman Melville
Jamrach's Menagerie by Carol Birch
The Cat's Table by Michael Ondaatje
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell

Here's some I remember enjoying:

Wake of the Perdido Star by Gene Hackman. Yes, the actor. One of my occasional re-reads.
Birds of Prey, Monsoon, Blue Horizon by Wilbur A. Smith. These are a prequel trilogy to his Courtney's of Africa series and take place about 150yrs before. Great high seas adventure, the rest of the series is good but is mostly land based in South Africa between 1860-1980.
Captain Blackwell's Prize by V.E. Ulett. New book.
If you like Dumas Alexandre, read The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo. It's the biography of his father.
Those are the ones I can think of right now. Of course there's all kinds of fanasty that takes place on the high seas as well.

I'm going to suggest the Terror by Dan Simmons. It's Dan Simmons speculations about what happened to the crew of the 1845 Franklin Exepedition to find the fabled Northwest Passage. Not quite high seas adventure but does deal with life aboard these vessels and how they try to survive being trapped in the arctic. Plus, there's a monster.

Two Years Before the Mast: A Sailor's Life at Sea by Richard Henry Dana gives a true historical account of life at sea in the 1800's.

This thread right here is one of the reasons I love S&L so much.