Rating: 
Summary: Hard to believe....
Review: ...that there was a time without GPS. Nichols brings the drama of ocean racing to life. I read it straight through, could not put it down. These were truly men of iron on ships of wood. Really brings the Vendee Globe, Sydney-Hobart and Fastnet into perspective.
Rating: 
Summary: A Truly Different Era
Review: As an avid sailor, I read this book a bit sheepishly, for these brave men sailed in a completely different world from today. Their around-the-world adventures were truly solo efforts, devoid of GPS, satellite phones and the like. They were forced to totally rely on all of their senses and ingenuity or risk perishing in this last of the great sailing accomplishments. A fascinating look into the psyches of these "normal" men.
Rating:
Summary: Kansan sails the seas
Review: Excellent book, tho I quibble with cover blurb "Only one made it back," as it made me anticipate more deaths than occurred (is that morbid of me?). A true non-sailor, I found this story easy to follow and well-written, though a glossary of nautical terms and maybe a diagram of a sailboat with salient features labeled would have helped me understand it better. Even so, highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: gripping
Review: excellent read, couldn't put it down. got me more intrested in sailing
Rating:
Summary: Destined to become a classic
Review: Hard to put down, but best savored with patience in smaller bites. Many nuggets of wisdom and a plethora of well turned prose. I've read several of the other great books about the 1968 Golden Globe, ie; The Long Way (Bernard Moitessier), A World of My Own (Robin Knox-Johnston) and The Strange Last Voyage of Donald Crowhurst (Tomalin and Hall), but this book is different from any of them. Mr Nichol's insightful overview of the race brings all these other books together to deepen your picture of this historical event.Having the perspective of these other books really heightened MY enjoyment, however I'm recommending this book to friends as a "first exposure" to this fascinating story. With the author's own seagoing background (his other non-fiction book, Sea Change, is also excellent) and unbridled love of the sea and things nautical, this story truly comes to life! I can't say how a non-sailor will take this book, but if you enjoy a good story, and particularly a good sea yarn, you'll love this book! Kudos to Peter Nichols. I want more!!!
Rating:
Summary: Rivetting read!
Review: I am a sailor and I found this book an incredible journey into the minds of 9 different men who dared. This was not a waltz up Everest or a stroll to the pole. This was 10 months of solitary confinement in a 32 foot boat in the roughest imaginable conditions. Bravo Zulu!
Rating:
Summary: Rivetting read!
Review: I am a sailor and I found this book an incredible journey into the minds of 9 different men who dared. This was not a waltz up Everest or a stroll to the pole. This was 10 months of solitary confinement in a 32 foot boat in the roughest imaginable conditions. Bravo Zulu!
Rating: 
Summary: It didn't live up to my expectations
Review: I am not a sailor, single-handed blue water or otherwise, and I am sure that that impacted my reaction to this book. But I read a very favorable review of it, I like adventure-personal challenge sort of books, and based on the review, I bought the book. But it was disappointing in several respects. First, I think there was no consistency in which nautical/boating terms the author/editors decided to define or explain for the reader. Hence, there were phrases which were defined, others that were not, and there seemed to be no discernible reason for the choice that was made. Secondly, the maps are lacking in critical details until the end of the book. A good adventure book needs good, detailed maps, and they aren't included in this book. Thirdly, the author/editors seem to have left out much about the race which is the subject of the book. For example, several of the competitors are not even shown in the photo section of the book, and there are many short choppy descriptions of various events which happended along the way. Finally, the book's cover itself is deceptive ("Only one made it back.") Not true, although there was only one winner. But the implication is that all the others died along the way, and that just didn't happen.
Rating:
Summary: A surprising thriller
Review: I bought this book after reading an excelent review in the New York Times. I was therefore fully expecting to find the story very interesting as I am an armchair adventurer (I have much enjoyed the recent non-fiction thrillers like "Into Thin Air" and "The Perfect Storm"). I was however, completely unprepared for how exciting a book this is. I've rarely been seriously unable to put a book down before now. I read "A Voyage For Madmen" from cover to cover, entirely enthralled to the last, heart-rending page. Not only does the book take you right on board the boat with these 'madmen' on their extraordinary voyage, but Nichols' insight into the soul of these men, and of the sea itself, makes this a profoundly moving book, and one which goes a long way towards answering the deep questions about the devils that drive such men. A wonderful book!
Rating:
Summary: A Truly Amazing Story
Review: I could not put down this well written book. However, I'm not sure that someone unfamiliar with sailing would find it quite as riveting. The variety of characters involved in this race was what really made this book though. The author seems to get inside their minds in a way that makes their outrageous exploits all the more amazing. I do wish that there had been additional charts showing the progress of the race in the book .
|
