Among the handful of such tales to emerge in the twentieth century, one of the most enduring surely must be Sir Francis Chichester’s account of his solitary, nine-month journey around the world in his 53-foot ketch Gipsy Moth IV. And from time immemorial, few narrative genres have had the power to so stir the emotions or captivate the imagination as the true account of a lone adventurer’s triumph over the titanic forces of nature.
The delight in stories well told is as intrinsic to who we are as a species as toolmaking or song.
The stories range from pensive cruises in sheltered waters to tales of endurance and high adventure and each one features an introduction from Jonathan Raban, whom The Guardian has called “the finest writer afloat since Conrad.” The Sailor’s Classics presents the best writing about the sea as observed from the perspective of a small boat under sail. It inspired the first solo around-the-world race and remains a timeless testament to the spirit of adventure. Gipsy Moth Circles the World was an international best-seller when it appeared in 1967. But when the old man returned in his 53-foot ketch Gypsy Moth IV nine months later, he had made history’s fastest circumnavigation. When 65-year-old Francis Chichester set sail on his solitary,eastward journey around the world in 1966, many believed he wouldn’t return alive.
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