Not all dreams have happy endings. Sailing in Circles, Goin' Somewhere
is the funny, bittersweet memoir of a Prince Edward Island man who, over
seven years, builds a classic 1930s wooden sailboat and, in 2004,
attempts to circumnavigate eastern North America. The author leaves a
small fishing port on the Island and tracks along the rugged coast, up
the St. Lawrence River, and through the Great Lakes. Alone, he
encounters heavy fog, near-collisions with freighters, mechanical
breakdowns, enormous seas, several brushes with disaster, and even a
hostile reception at one French-speaking port. He meets odd and curious
people. It all comes to an inglorious and mundane end when the author
and his boat, the Arja D., are stuck in, of all places, Peoria,
Illinois. Was it worth it? Maybe.
Written by Finley Martin, a respected Island fiction writer, this finely
crafted and humorous book will appeal to adventurers, sailors, and
lovers of a good yarn.