Books that Inspire & that may bring out Envy & Impatience
I'm going to put our personal adventures on hold for this week & introduce a few sailing reads that I've loved. I'll write about more in the future. (I'm a little pressed for time -as my sister & niece are here & I can't really focus on the blog this week. So excuse the very short blog today.
I think I've read or listened to these books at least twice or even more. I've put them in chronological order or when I've read them. They are all well written & have taken me places that hopefully someday I will visit!
An Embarrassment of Mangoes by Ann Vanderhoof. -I got this book back in 2004. I have no idea what led me to buy this book or where I even heard about it. However, it was truly inspiring. I didn't think I knew that taking a 2 year break from regular life & sailing off to different islands was even a thing. I think what makes this book special is the people she & her husband meet in different places. It seems to have really opened up her outlook of the world. A huge plus about this book is that it also includes a bunch of the recipes she learned in her travels!
Swell by Liz Clark. -This is really the book that made me realize my dream. I heard about Liz Clark, her amazing story & book she wrote in the spring of 2019 on a podcast. I was fascinated, bought the book & just knew that I wanted to sail around the world. She is an amazing woman & took on her adventure pretty much by herself. I really admire her strength & her transformational growth during her voyage. I remind myself that I can be strong & learn new skills just like her. -Even though I'm starting much later in life.
Sailing a Serious Ocean by John Kretschmer is based more on the technical side of sailing rather than from a cruising view. This is more like a bible for extreme weather sailing or ocean sailing. So we hopefully won't need a lot of his advice until much later. -Or never. But there is a lot he writes about in terms of what is the most important equipment to have on your vessel while sailing. He also discusses different sailing techniques that are helpful in a variety of situations. I got this book right after we purchased our sailboat last year & will definitely keep using it for reference. Kretschmer is definitely someone you should check out if you haven't heard of him already.
One book I did read a long, long time ago that I read again this last year was Dove, by Robin Lee Graham. I remember loving this book the first time I read it. His adventures seemed so exotic & exciting. This time around when I read it, it just sounded like he was complaining the whole time! My initial thought was that he was a spoiled brat. So many people would kill for an opportunity like that. However, when I really thought about this I did change my view.
First, he was a teenager. Most teenagers want to be a little more carefree than Robin was allowed to be. He was on a deadline & didn't get to enjoy his visit around the world -like most people of his age when they go backpacking or something like that. I think the pressure he was under just sapped a lot of the enjoyment out of the experience for him.
Secondly, the amenities he had on his boat were nothing like people get to have on their sailboats today. I can honestly say that I don't know if I'd want to sail around the world or anywhere for a long amount of time if there wasn't anything like an autopilot, electricity, more accurate charts, weather reports, roller furling, etc.... I could go on & on.
So not recommending this book for inspiration. But it is interesting.
I hope I'll be forgiven for the very short posting today but I'll be back next with with updates from the boat-front. Don't forget to hit the "follow" button below. Thanks for reading!
