by Michael Mann
First published 2015
Michael Mann stands on the deck of his tiny Montgomery sloop, staring at the endless Atlantic ahead. At 22, he has made an impulsive yet carefully calculated decision to sail solo across the ocean in Little Breeze, a boat barely longer than a pickup truck. The 38-day crossing tests every limit of his basic sailing knowledge. Windless doldrums leave him motionless for days. Hurricane-driven swells threaten to swallow his fragile craft. Without modern GPS or weather forecasts, Mann navigates by instinct and determination alone. Each day brings new challenges that force him to dig deeper into reserves of courage he never knew he possessed. This oceanic ordeal becomes more than a test of seamanship. It transforms into a young man's search for meaning and direction in his life.
Genres: fiction, adventure, coming-of-age, contemporary, biography-memoir
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, man-vs-nature, self-discovery
Setting: Atlantic Ocean, Montgomery
Period: 22 years old
249 pages · Paperback · I Street Press