I don't own either of these books, but I've looked at the Ashey one. As I remember it's one of the better "beginner books" - sound, straightforward, well-illustrated (like everything else from Kalmbach), and quite basic. My one reservation would be that it's been around for several years, and probably not quite up to date. There's been something of an explosion in products - kits, tools, paints, reference material - for ship modelers during the past few years. But I don't know of any book on the market that would be absolutely up to date in that respect.
I'm not familiar with the Peck book; I couldn't find any reference to it at either Amazon or Barnes and Noble. It sounds interesting.
Be warned: there's a shortage of good books about ship modeling for beginners. There are quite a few excellent volumes by experienced veteran modelers, but those folks are trying to exhibit their skills and accomplishments - which can be pretty depressing for somebody just starting out. Too many of the "beginner books" were, to put it a bit bluntly, written by people who never got beyond beginner status themselves. I won't name names, but some of those volumes have been responsible for perpetrating some utter nonsense on unsuspecting customers.
We discussed the subject of ship modeling books in this forum a couple of weeks ago. I've moved that thread, which is titled "booklist," to the first page; it should appear just below this one. In that discussion we were concentrating on modern warship modeling; if you're interested in sailing vessels I'll have some additional suggestions - and I'm sure other participants will have more.
My advice is to take a look at the Ashey book and see how you like it. I'm not aware of a better work for the purpose.
Youth, talent, hard work, and enthusiasm are no match for old age and treachery.