Good luck getting to the end.
Half the tale seems to be written in a thick northeastern dialect, with a few other dialects thrown in, creating such a thick slog of dialog that this somewhat dull story drags to a near complete stop, not on its own lackluster merits, but solely by wearing the reader down.
I began this book six or seven years ago, read fifty pages, then put it down. It was only through my well trained literate obstinance that I picked up the book and made it to the end.
I suppose that if you like sailing ships, fishing, and after-school specials, where the story has a moral like a jib hitting you in the head, you'd find this an interesting and engaging story. Otherwise, this is a tale to skip (unless your a Kipling completist, in which case you already know what you're in for).