Sea change - Peter Nichols

With only a sextant, his instincts as a seasoned sailor, and a boat filled with memories of his floundering marriage, Peter Nichols sets out on a solo voyage from England to Maine, where he plans to sell his beloved, twenty-seven-foot, engineless boat, Toad.Halfway across the ocean, his boat springs a leak and his voyage becomes a desperate struggle to survive. Filled with intelligence, bravery and humor, Sea Change is a thrilling adventure story. It is a classic tale of a man struggling to come to terms with his reckless spirit, his highest hopes, and his broken dreams.

Peter Nichols is the author of A Voyage for Madmen, the story of the 1968 solo race around the world, and the recent Final Voyage: A Story of Arctic Disaster and One Fateful Whaling Season.

Nichols is marvelous at describing the feelings of awe and loneliness that the sea inspires... In his understated telling of the story, he never seeks your sympathy. He just breaks your heart.
The New York Review Of Books

A heartbreaking and harrowing sea tale... Nichols has (written) something wonderful.
Los Angeles Times

"Sea Change is many things: adventure tale, sailing memoir, confession. What holds it together is the author's fine ear for language and rhythms of the sea."--The Seattle Times


"I think Sea Change is a magnificent addition to the literature of small-boating adventuring."--Jonathan Raban, author of Badlands