The Great Wide Sea / M. H. Herlong

January 14, 2023 9:14 AM

After their mother dies, Ben, Dylan, and Gerry want nothing more than for their lives to get back to normal as quickly as possible. Instead their father sells their house, buys a boat, and tells them that they're going to spend the next year sailing around the world. The boys hate the idea and also hate the experience--then they wake up one morning to find that their father is gone, they're lost at sea, and there's a storm approaching.
posted by johnofjack (2 comments total)

I read this book 14 years ago right after it came out. It was so good! It really worked for me; it was absolutely gripping, the kind of read where I was annoyed when I had to put the book down and tend to real life obligations (work, sleep, etc.)

It's a YA novel, probably also suitable for middle grade; I'd recommend it to anyone who likes Hatchet or other "man vs. nature" stories (and it also had some "man vs. himself" aspects, which--for me, at least--always deepens & enriches the story).
posted by johnofjack at 9:17 AM on January 14

Thanks for the recommendation. It certainly is gripping. It was heartbreaking when the full story of the mother’s accident is revealed and the relationship between the brothers was told really well. It was a bit unrealistic that these kids were more skilled than about 90% of the yachties cruising the Bahamas yet didn’t think to reef the mainsail with a storm approaching. Such a series of disasters, I never knew where the author would take them next.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 1:11 PM on January 17 [1 favorite]