Rating: 
Summary: Moitessier the mystic
Review: Some people come into contact with their subconscious mind and they rile against it, and we call them mad. Then other people have this encounter with the numinous and they surrender to the will of the world, to "the gods" as Moitessier called it. Moitessier is one of these later day mystics, who centuries ago would likely have become a monk or a poet, but in this barbarian age, he goes to sea. His earlier books are his best, and "The Long Way" is no disappointment. This book is as much about the internal struggles of Bernard Moitessir, as it is about his single handed sailing exploit around the world. Having circled the world, having passed the three great Southern capes, and while leading the first around the world sailing race Moitessier quits and heads for his friends in Tahiti. Moitessier had accomplished what he had set out to accomplish, and in the true anti-hero fashion of the day, he refused to become a bit player in some "Madison Avenue" nightmare featuring 15 minutes of fame that leaves one's life suffering of anti climax. He refused to allow the commercial world to steal this victory. "The Long Way" is a good read and I came away with a great respect for Bernard Moitessier. The translation from French to English by William Rodarmor is exceptional. John Beasley
Rating: 
Summary: The Bible
Review: This book has been the Bible of offshore navigation for quite a few generations of sailors. It is a very captivating mix of personnal reflexion and also a remarkable source of knowledge for any offshore sailing fan. The author is a self made sailor of great experience and I have found his approach to be quite helpful ( including when I had the pleasure of sailing by myself at night in bad weather....)
Rating:
Summary: Great account of struggle with the sea and soul.
Review: This book must be read in the context of the other two about the first ever single hand round the world race in the early sixties. Though Bernard isn't much of a writer,he is so consistently devoted to the sea--even when it's nasty back--and his struggle to find his place in the world that the account leaves you admiring this man's courage and single vision. Among "cruisers"--i.e. those devoted to blue water sailing above all else--Bernard is known as the uncontested expert. He is famous for "surfing" his boat in heaver weather, a feat few sailers want to experience, much less purposefully seak out. The appendix is full of weathered tips on safe sailing.
Rating: 
Summary: The Long Way To End A Book
Review: This book starts out with so much poignancy and promise, I guess it just sets your hopes too high. I'm always amazed how someone can describe weeks and months of sailing alone with any sort of pinache at all, but Moitessier carries it off very well. The book also has an excellent set of technical tips for long-range sailors, which spill over into a highly educational appendix. I think Moitessier either just got tired of writing ("Suddenly they are all run over by a truck" ala Richard Brautigan), or went nuts. The last couple of chapters are a diatribe of the evils of modern civilization (all true), but I kept getting the uncomfortable feeling of someone sitting on your chest and spitting in your eye. To bolster the "just got tired" argument, the route map shows several serious knock-downs noted by the words "keel in the air", barely glossed over in the text. To bolster the "went nuts" argument is a footnote that indicates he instructed his publisher to "send all royalties due me for the sale of this book to the Pope". As if the Institution of the Church wasn't the archetype of the "Monster" he so railed against. Just skip the last couple of chapters and enjoy the appendix.
Rating:
Summary: The Long Way To End A Book
Review: This book starts out with so much poignancy and promise, I guess it just sets your hopes too high. I'm always amazed how someone can describe weeks and months of sailing alone with any sort of pinache at all, but Moitessier carries it off very well. The book also has an excellent set of technical tips for long-range sailors, which spill over into a highly educational appendix. I think Moitessier either just got tired of writing ("Suddenly they are all run over by a truck" ala Richard Brautigan), or went nuts. The last couple of chapters are a diatribe of the evils of modern civilization (all true), but I kept getting the uncomfortable feeling of someone sitting on your chest and spitting in your eye. To bolster the "just got tired" argument, the route map shows several serious knock-downs noted by the words "keel in the air", barely glossed over in the text. To bolster the "went nuts" argument is a footnote that indicates he instructed his publisher to "send all royalties due me for the sale of this book to the Pope". As if the Institution of the Church wasn't the archetype of the "Monster" he so railed against. Just skip the last couple of chapters and enjoy the appendix.
Rating:
Summary: Rapture of the Deep
Review: This is simply the best sailing book ever, and very dangerous for anyone who has a settled life, but wonders if there might not be more. Resist this, if you can: "My real log is written in the sea and sky; the sails talking with the rain and the stars amid the sounds of the sea, the silences full of secret things between my boat & me, like the times I spent as a child listening to the forest talk." It is also a story about a competitive man who had the prize in his hands (winning a non-stop, solo around the world race), thought about all the cameras, newsmen, Brigitte Bardot in attendance et al, and decided to just keep on sailing.
Oh yes, and the book is chock-full of extremely good advice about blue-water sailing. I wish I had a below-decks steering station with a plexiglass dome to look through...
Rating:
Summary: Rapture of the Deep
Review: This is simply the best sailing book ever, and very dangerous for anyone who has a settled life, but wonders if there might not be more. Resist this, if you can: "My real log is written in the sea and sky; the sails talking with the rain and the stars amid the sounds of the sea, the silences full of secret things between my boat & me, like the times I spent as a child listening to the forest talk." It is also a story about a competitive man who had the prize in his hands (winning a non-stop, solo around the world race), thought about all the cameras, newsmen, Brigitte Bardot in attendance et al, and decided to just keep on sailing.
Oh yes, and the book is chock-full of extremely good advice about blue-water sailing. I wish I had a below-decks steering station with a plexiglass dome to look through...
Rating: 
Summary: Courageous, but not exciting.
Review: This is the story of Bernard's (the author) circumnavigation of the world, solo and non-stop. Bernard's courage is very inspiring. What drives the author to such lengths is his desire to escape from the ills of modern civilization. The narrative is not very exciting as the it vacillates between sailing log and random musings about civilization which are not too insightful.
Rating:
Summary: Best sailing book ever!!!
Review: This was one of the most inspiring books I've ever read. After speaking to many people about what good "adventure" books they'd read, many people recommended this one. I was impressed... The author is very good at putting the reader on the deck of the boat and really getting the reader involved with the story. It's hard to imagine sailing around the world much less doing it alone. I forgot I was reading non-fiction at times. I couldn't put the book down and recommend it as required reading for anyone of you adventure seekers out there.
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