Read, Review, Travel: Maiden Voyage
I just finished reading Maiden Voyage by Tania Aebi, and it was an amazing book! Tania was the first American woman, as well as the youngest person to sail around the world alone! She wrote about her adventures in this 300-plus page book with the help of Bernadette Brennan. My mother-in-law recommended the book to me, and when I expressed interest, she gifted it to me for Christmas.
I do not believe I have ever been on a sailboat before. Even though I have no experience with sailing, I was still captured by this book! Tania made me want to pick up the book every single day and keep reading, which doesn’t happen often. I loved it so much that I would constantly tell my husband what was happening in the book, so it was almost as if he read it too!
I enjoyed reading about her adventures and her reasoning behind her expedition. She was eighteen when she started her epic journey and 21 when she finished. She started on May 30, 1985 in New York City and returned over two years later on November 6, 1987. When she started her trip, she was not planning to attend college and was not sure what she wanted to do with her life. Her father encouraged her to attempt this feat with the understanding that she would write articles to help fund her trip.
Living on a 26 foot sailboat for over two years, Tania maneuvered through storms, canals, engine troubles, and windless oceans. She made friends with other sailors when docked, and she even managed to find herself in two different relationships (not at the same time though!). One thing that I did not care for was that her book switched from talking about her adventures to her obsessing over another sailor, who then became her boyfriend.
It was incredible to read about countries and islands that I have never been to before. It was also extraordinary to read about these experiences through the eyes of a young woman during the late 1980’s. It was also sad to learn that some parts of the ocean were already polluted and filled with plastic back in the late 1980’s.
Besides writing about her adventures and the people she met, Tania also wrote about her family and her upbringing. She dedicates her book to her mother even though she caused Tania, her siblings, and Tania’s father a lot of pain, albeit not intentionally.
Tania did have a cat on board, and at one point, she had two cats on board. I felt bad for the cats because they had to get used to living their life on a constantly moving boat. Plus, they did not have much room to roam about as the sailboat was only 26 feet long!
This book was entertaining and had me on the edge of my seat the entire time! I was impressed that a book about sailing was able to hold my interest for so long! Also, I was incredibly awestruck that an 18 year old woman was brave enough to sail around the world all by herself with very little training and experience! At times I found her to be crazy, but at other times, I found her to be extremely brave and daring! I would have never done what she did at 18, 19, 20, or even 21! I get a bit intimidated when traveling solo in a large city. I cannot imagine what it would be like traveling solo in the middle of a huge ocean! Tania Aebi is incredibly brave, and I admire her and her accomplishment! I highly recommend you read this book to learn of her achievement.
