Changing Course : A Woman's Guide to Choosing the Cruising Life [Paperback]

Debra Cantrell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 12, 2003

"[A] well-researched, gracious and truthful account." --Georgian Bay Today

When her husband proposed living on a boat full-time, Debra Cantrell wondered what other women in her position had done and began a five-year study to find out what choices they had made and how it had all worked out. The result is Changing Course, a guidebook for navigating this odyssey. No matter what the outcome, each woman was strengthened by the experience.

In an era when "downshifting" is common and people are considering the benefits of simplified living, Changing Course is both timely and practical.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Changing Course is first and foremost a primer in rational decision-making. The focus of the book is the question: to cruise or not to cruise, a question Cantrell considers most difficult for women. [But] the book is helpful regardless of who wants to go and who hangs back." - Points East; "Changing Course is aimed at the process of making this major decision about your life. Cantrell's professional skills as a counselor and educator are well exercised in this volume. Above all, she offers reasonable answers about challenges and risk-taking, Many readers will find a safety net inherent in her approach to cruising..." - 48[degrees] North; "Ask any couple living aboard an average-size cruising boat: men troubleshoot; women problem-solve. Men need to know what; women need to know why. Men prefer to learn by doing, figuring out things as they go along; women are more comfortable figuring out how things work before swinging into action." - Sailing

From the Back Cover

"The essential first step for all couples planning to sail away; this is a must-read."--Paul and Sheryl Shard, authors of Sail Away!

"Changing Course is the first book that honestly evaluates the transition to life afloat."--Beth Leonard, author of The Voyager's Handbook

Debra Ann Cantrell faced a dilemma when her husband proposed living and cruising on a boat. She would lose a career she loved and, she feared, everything by which she'd defined herself. She wondered how others had made the decision to go cruising and how their choice affected their lives. Her search for answers led her to more than a hundred women, over a five-year period, whose partners had proposed the cruising life. Changing Course chronicles the odyssey of making a major lifestyle change from land to sea. This thought-provoking and highly personal book explores what women stand to gain when they set forth on such a journey--and what they stand to lose if they do not.

"Excellent preparation."--48 Degrees North

"A solid resource for cruisers. . . . Cantrell's sensible advice is reassuring, positive, and affirming."--Southwinds

"Fresh and honest, and the author is warm, enthusiastic, and encouraging."--Good Old Boat

"Poignant and highly inspiring."--Women's Sailing Foundation

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: International Marine/Ragged Mountain Press; 2 edition (August 12, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071427899
• ISBN-13: 978-0071427890
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #401,379 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #32 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Outdoor Recreation > Sailing > Excursion Guides
  • #48 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Miscellaneous > Women in Sports

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars No Holds Barred, August 27, 2001

By 

Harriet (Naples, Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Changing Course: A Woman's Guide to Choosing the Cruising Life (Hardcover)

Because my husband and I plan to go cruising within the next couple of years, I have tried to read everything I can get my hands on concerning cruising from a woman's perspective. Most of what I've read was either written by men extolling the virtues of cruising for women, or they were scary travelogues by women about huge waves, wet bunks, and life-threatening injuries. Deb Cantrell's book tells it like it is from a wide variety of female perspectives. She shows both the good and bad about cruising from the women who have done it, some more successfully than others. Instead of being a cruising "how to", she focuses on what is to be gained, as well as what one risks losing, by taking the plunge. I am especially grateful for the section on fears, as I now know that many of the fears I have about this lifestyle change are shared by women of all ages. The author also provides valuable insights and suggestions for dealing with those fears in ways to which women can relate. But the most special aspect of this book is the fact that it draws on the experiences of women of all ages, economic circumstances, and sailing skills. The rich diversity of comments and experiences makes this a truly invaluable resource for the cruising "wannabe" and the more reluctant among us. Without belaboring the point, I can't imagine being realistically prepared to move aboard and cruise without having read and reread this book until it's tattered.

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A GOOD COURSE, October 1, 2000

By 

Richard Cook "RichardSC" (Denver, CO USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Changing Course: A Woman's Guide to Choosing the Cruising Life (Hardcover)

Ms. Cantrell's survey of 107 women , both surprised and overwhelmed me. The woman pared down their lives to spend varying lengths of time living aboard a sailboat with their partners, discovering paths and places that cannot be experienced in life on land. I bought this book for its sub-title, -A Woman's Guide to Choosing the Cruising Life. I was going to present it to my wife, as a part of my gentle persuasion, hoping it would help me to encourage her to begin to feel the excitement I feel about the prospect of spending a part of our lives together on a boat.

The next day on my way out to ride the bus to work, I grabbed it and began to read. If I had been walking while reading, I would have been stopped in my tracks. I have read a lot of magazine articles about sailing, places to sail, and places not to sail and passed some of them on to my wife with hopes that she would brush up against some of my enthusiasm.

However, Changing Course gave me a different and more robust excitement about the prospect of the two of us casting off the land and sailing, 'round a bit. As I read, I was unable to restrain my excitement and found myself constantly interrupting her to read some of the wonderful parts and passages. This concise little book will answer most questions about the fears and mysteries of cruising the oceans of the world and living a different and more rewarding life with the one you love.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Guys, January 8, 2002

By 

D Paul "D Paul" (Denver, CO United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Changing Course: A Woman's Guide to Choosing the Cruising Life (Hardcover)

When you asked what your wife thought about buying a bigger boat and sailing away, was your suggestion received enthusiastically?

If not, YOU NEED THIS BOOK! It is worth its weight in gold. It will answer all her questions, and it will give you a better understanding of her point of view, and let you know what you need to change about yourself to help get her on board.