Flirting With Mermaids: The Unpredictable Life of a Sailboat Delivery Skipper (Hardcover)

by John Kretschmer (Author) "I MAKE LANDFALLS for a living..." (more)
Key Phrases: foulweather gear, delivery skipper, steel boat, Fort Lauderdale, Cape Horn, Gulf Stream (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys the idea of bluewater sailing." -- Good Old Boat, May/June 2000

"Kretschmer's breezy, self-deprecating and genuinely warm style is perfectly suited..." -- Living Aboard, February 2000

For anyone not smitten by long-distance sailing, the fascination with this grueling, sometimes dangerous labor is difficult to fathom. Yet reading about Kretschmer's extreme adventures from the safety of land is both exhilarating and absorbing. -- Sun-Sentinel, May 3, 1999

I have a very simple yardstick for determining the quality of a book. I ask myself, "Do I wish I'd written it?" Oftentimes the answer is, "No, thank heavens!" In this case, however, there's no question that I wish I'd authored this book.

Kretschmer is far more than just an extremely experienced sailor--he's also a poet, a philosopher, a romantic, and like most sailors, an optimist. The book is filled with a myriad of sea stories--all eminently readable--as well as a salting of practical information about sailboats and the sea, all delivered with a wry and self-deprecating sense of humor.

Kretschmer once doubled Cape Horn in a tiny boat, and the fame from that venture launched him on his career as a delivery skipper, which he tells with both humor and a sense of adventure. There were times when I couldn't put the book down, and times when I found myself laughing out loud. . .From a bizarre research expedition with a group of Swedes hunting for the ancient Mayan navy to a rough mid-winter crossing of the North Atlantic, Kretschmer's tale unfolds like a comfortably worn chart.

I'd be surprised if you don't enjoy Flirting With Mermaids, and like me, hope that John Kretschmer writes again soon. -- Sailing Magazine, September 1999

Product Description
In fifteen years of making landfalls, the author has had numerous sailing adventures including a voyage around Cape Horn, a winter crossing of the North Atlantic with Force 13 winds, and an unusual research voyage in the Caribbean.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Sheridan House (April 25, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1574090550
• ISBN-13: 978-1574090550
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #903,175 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Buy It, Read It, Love It, December 22, 1999

By A Customer

This is a great book! I dreaded finishing it as I saw the pages rapidly flying by. Mr. Kretschmer's every day adventures as a sailboat delivery skipper are very entertaining, but the true wealth in this book is this guy's attitude. An inspiration to all, sailors and landlubbers, who are concious of their voyage across this little blue planet.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Enormously entertaining!, October 17, 1999

By	Ann Deatherage (Porthill, Idaho USA) - See all my reviews

This book is filled with humor and adventure, an unbeatable combination. The author displays a very engaging style and these exciting tales of sailing adventures will entertain sailors and landlubbers alike.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a Life!, August 4, 2003

By	James R. Mckinley (San Diego, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Flirting With Mermaids: The Unpredictable Life of a Sailboat Delivery Skipper (Paperback)

The Author, a profesional delivery captain, makes his living doing what the rest of us have to pay to do! The author has probably done more Blue Water Sailing in a few years than most serious sailors do in a lifetime. This is a great story of adventure, but it is told in a humorous tone. Adventure, romance, danger, and outrageous characters fill this book. Each story is better than the last one, and this was truly an enjoyable read.