What I came away with from reading this was an odd feeling of, wow how much things have changed but at the same time, wow things haven’t changed all that much. Without giving anything away, this book is about a motivated individual who builds a sailboat and sails around the world alone, which was the first recorded solo trip on record. This was a major feat for a little under a hundred years ago to be the first to do such a trip (especially considering he meets people who still believe the world is flat). I really enjoyed his easy way of telling the story without being too technical or boasting too much about himself which he is rightly entitled to do. The entire book hardly ever mentions how great his accomplishments are and just sticks to small antidotes about how the journey progressed some being funny and others quite interesting.
The human spirit for adventure has always been strong and his is just one of those examples. Having never built a boat or sailed a yacht Joshua set to work to accomplish his goal despite naysayers who “knew more”. This really appeals to me since I often feel that lots of people are held back because other people tell them no. Instead of trying to prove these people wrong he listened and then went on doing what he thought was best for himself. He used patience and being present to complete the voyage starting with building the boat and continuing with battling weather and other elements of the trip. With all our modern conveniences and lifestyles it almost seems we have become hyper aware of what could happen and start to live in fear. For example people now rely on a GPS when you used to navigate the world by stars, we are terrified of weather when the only way you used to be able to predict was to wait and see what happened. These things have not changed in the world but people have. Letting go of your reliance on other things and other people and trusting yourself seems to be a dying art.
All in all, I would recommend reading the book. It is fast, entertaining and free! You don’t have to be into sailing to enjoy it and if you are you may learn something. As a historical piece it provides a great little view of what life was like only a few generations ago. It motivated me to be more accepting of adventure but also more trusting in myself.
Below is the link to the free e version in a few formats. Enjoy.
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