The novelist sets out to circumnavigate the British Isles by
himself in an old fishing boat. This is no ordinary travel memoir,
or pablum for the yachting set - but is a moving and richly
observant book about life, politics, art and love. After describing
some of the eccentric sailors who have preceded him as
circumnavigators, Raban explains how the loss of England's wild
areas created a need in people to escape to the wilderness. For
him, the sea was such an escape and a revelation. No old salt, he
had to teach himself navigation and learn the rudiments of sailing.
His descriptions of the beauties of the sea and its black terrors
are gripping, but he is always psychically in touch with the
unresolved issues in his own life - his complex relationship with
his soldier/parson/hero father is achingly real. The exquisitely
observed sections on man, sea and boat would be enough, but there
is a heart and soul here and a man who laughs at his own foibles,
the English Malaise, the world's follies, and worries about them as
well. He is an ideal companion for those who have dreamed of escape
to a wilderness: literate, sensitive, yet he won't let you get away
with a thing. His wisdom is easy to take, and Raban supplies it
with a gusto and perception that is rare. The sea, the old ports,
the people of the British Isles and a man trying to under. stand
himself and the meaning of existence sound like a formidable cargo,
hut, done with grace and elegance, it becomes both a love affair
and adventure. (Kirkus Reviews)
In 1982 Jonathan Raban set out alone in a 30 foot ketch to sail around Britain. He had never before handled a boat at sea, but wanted to inspect the strange country where he lived. This book is part travel book, part autobiography and part novel. By the author of "Arabia through the looking Glass".
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