Customer Reviews

No Shoes Allowed

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Sage words on life and business. This book is a wonderful read if you have been to the islands or not. Insight is given on the charter industry and the personal relationships involved in such a job. Mr. DeGroot is a smart and amicable guy.
Obviously this is his first book and the writing is a bit stiff at the beginning, but don't give up he loosens up and turns into a wonderful story teller.
Highly recommend this entertaining read! And then don't stop till you are done with the second book!

The Author is a sailor turned businessman turned sailor. This is a collection of short stories spanning his 9 years as the skipper of a beautiful wooden boat, the Ring Andersen, as he takes charterers to visit the Leeward and Windward Islands of the Caribbean. It is fun reading and it provides an 'in' into the apparent glamorous and adventurous life of men called 'Captain' that hold the fate of vessel and crew at their decisions and skills. I admit that I find some of the stories hard to believe (I.e. "the US is in war with the USSR now") they are simply too good to be truth, but they have high entertainment value. Other stories are hilarious and people may be wondering why you laugh so hard while reading or remembering them in public. Entertaining and informative.

I've sailed the same waters, know a few of the same characters, and all the ports, etc. This book tells what it was like in the Glory Days of chartering when most of the boats were owner operated. In its day, Ring was one of the largest, and most popular in the luxury side of the market, but its size was a disadvantage as well.

Jan de Groot spins a good yarn. One of the main attributes of a captain is to keep his guests entertained. As a reader you will feel the excitement, fun, sometime aggravation, and danger, sailing the eastern Caribbean. There is even a BIG BONUS, a bounty of wonderful pictures. And there are some true charter business insights such as " What makes chartering unique is.....the operator will be living with his clientele. Or, Chartering is a business.. A business is supposed to make a profit.........from a monetary point of view, chartering is a complete flop". The author quickly balances this, by quoting others who say NO, its the lifestyle!".

This is not just a HOW TO book. It is the story of one man's love affair with his boat, his young wife, his children from an earlier marriage, and a spectacular life style at sea. Even if you are not interested in investigating chartering as a business, but like travel, cruising or plain old boating, you will walk away with a warm feeling living the charter life through de Groot's eyes. To find out if he sleeps with Kate, you will have to buy the book because, I wont give that away.

Joel Jacobs, Forum Host YachtWorld's From the Bridge Forum...

This book nails it! We are a professional charter crew who has worked the same waters as Captain DeGroot. His stories of the joys and frustrations of running a luxury charter yacht, of the sometimes delightful and sometimes maddening guests, and the atmosphere and culture of the beautiful Eastern Caribbean are entertaining, enlightening, and REAL! We especially relate to his philosophy of chartering and interacting with people in the islands. Bravo, Capt. DeGroot, for capturing the experience in such a delightful, well-written manner.

As someone who is a long time reader of books having ANYTHING to do with sailing, I really haven't found many that have been written exclusivly from the point of a charter boat captain. That is what made this book so interesting to me. I have read plenty of ones who have been stranded, or books on famous explorers etc, but not so much on the everyday people who own and operate charters. I liked how it showed you that it was not all just people who had huge amounts of money to plunk down on a boat, and not just people who felt they were raised up higher than everyone else on the water, but just down to earth people and the stories that happen aboard their ships. I would reccomend this to anyone who loves to sail, because it gives a sence that someday, it could be me behind the wheel of that ship giving orders and exploring to my hearts whims.

A nice easy read with a real "boatie" feel. Although I'm a cabin cruiser owner, not a sailor, it's great to read these cruising stories. Easy book to pick up and read whenever you have a spare bit of time. Peter (Australia).

One of the best features of this book is its size and length. Incredibly, Jan has packed a wonderful account of caribbean life iin a very small package (it will fit in your back pocket). The size is misleading as every page is rich with character. I found myself saying 'jeez!' many times in reaction to some of the unbelievable (but true) adventures of 'Ring Anderson' and crew.

This is one of those books that will really make you hate your job...unless your job is captain of a 100'+ charter yacht. However, Jan doesn't make it sound as though it's a job spent reclining on deck catching some sun. He does wonders to suppress that myth and put it into a more down-to-earth perspective. Still, it's better than being stuck in a cubicle breathing everyone elses exhalations.

This is one little paperback we plan to have permanently in the shipboard library. Short, friendly and often hilarious, it's a compilation of vignettes about the chartering life, told by the owner/operator of the famous Caribbean charter yacht Ring Andersen. If you've ever chartered, worked on a charter boat, or seen the movie Captain Ron, you'll get a big kick out of No Shoes. It's a great book to have on board for guests who are looking for a quick read too.

Well written detailing the humour, excitement and realism of sail boat chartering in the Caribbean with real live characters. This book should delight anyone particularly if they are boaters or travellers. Provides incite into life in the Caribbean and the foibles of charter clients and staff.

This is a charming accounting of Captain de Groot's chartering years in the Caribbean. He not only discusses the ins and outs of the buisness, but gives the reader appreciation for the difficulties of networking with each island governed separatedly. The Captain clearly has a gift with people as he is exceptional with interfacing with all kinds of people and in all kinds of situations.