Non-fiction
An Embarrassment of Mangoes by Ann Vanderhoof (Broadway Books, $24.95, 305pp. Hardcover)
One of the marks of a great read is how much is accomplished with a story. This is a good yarn, a travelogue, a love story, inspirational, informative and gives great food (there are recipies from all over the Caribbean included). It's the perfect summer read.
This is a story of a dream come true. When the author and her husband want to ditch their deadline-driven magazine jobs in Toronto for relaxation in the Caribbean, they don't mean at an all-inclusive resort. They want to sail there in their own boat.
First they have to deal with a couple of tiny obstacles: Sailing skills: rudimentary for her, recreational for him. Neither had the chops for a Toronto to Caribbean jaunt. The boat: they don't have one. Money: how to fund a two-year sojourn away from their jobs?
Calculations lead to a five-year plan (later extended to seven), which allows for planning, saving, sailing lessons and boat-purchasing. There was also plenty of time for re-assuring friends and family who consider the idea of leaving your job and life for two years total insanity.
When they finally sail away from Toronto in the Receta (Spanish for recipe), you're as thrilled as they are, having completed the journey to the journey.
Not only do they successfully sail to and around the Caribbean, they spend every single day of the two years they planned on there, in spite of predictions from friends that the adventure wouldn't last.
From shrimping off the coast of North Carolina to waiting out the weather in Florida before sailing to the Bahamas and beyond, every chapter contains new experiences, friends and delicious descriptions of local dishes, with a new recipe in each chapter. Much too soon, their first year is almost over and they must decide whether they will turn back home or continue. Another list, this time of pros and cons before they decide to continue. The second part of the journey is the toughest and the sweetest.
Buy it from Amazon.com
An Embarrassment of Mangoes by Ann Vanderhoof (Broadway Books, $24.95, 305pp. Hardcover)
One of the marks of a great read is how much is accomplished with a story. This is a good yarn, a travelogue, a love story, inspirational, informative and gives great food (there are recipies from all over the Caribbean included). It's the perfect summer read.
This is a story of a dream come true. When the author and her husband want to ditch their deadline-driven magazine jobs in Toronto for relaxation in the Caribbean, they don't mean at an all-inclusive resort. They want to sail there in their own boat.
First they have to deal with a couple of tiny obstacles: Sailing skills: rudimentary for her, recreational for him. Neither had the chops for a Toronto to Caribbean jaunt. The boat: they don't have one. Money: how to fund a two-year sojourn away from their jobs?
Calculations lead to a five-year plan (later extended to seven), which allows for planning, saving, sailing lessons and boat-purchasing. There was also plenty of time for re-assuring friends and family who consider the idea of leaving your job and life for two years total insanity.
When they finally sail away from Toronto in the Receta (Spanish for recipe), you're as thrilled as they are, having completed the journey to the journey.
Not only do they successfully sail to and around the Caribbean, they spend every single day of the two years they planned on there, in spite of predictions from friends that the adventure wouldn't last.
From shrimping off the coast of North Carolina to waiting out the weather in Florida before sailing to the Bahamas and beyond, every chapter contains new experiences, friends and delicious descriptions of local dishes, with a new recipe in each chapter. Much too soon, their first year is almost over and they must decide whether they will turn back home or continue. Another list, this time of pros and cons before they decide to continue. The second part of the journey is the toughest and the sweetest.
Buy it from Amazon.com
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