The Reluctant Mariner

"the Reluctant Mariner" tells of an Australian couple’s five-year circumnavigation in a 12.2m. steel ketch, Onawa. The author, Joanna Hackett, was a self-proclaimed landlubber, and never imagined herself sailing of over the horizon in search of adventure, but having married someone who was keen to do just that, was willing to "give it a go". Her warts-and-all account, accompanied by a dry wit and an easy writing style made this book a sell-out when it first hit the shelves in 2001. This is a fascinating read for the armchair traveler and essential reading for all those about to take off into the great unknown. If you want to know what it’s like to spend five years sailing around the world with your partner in a small yacht, and still remain friends, read this entertaining, amusing and interesting book.

The Reluctant Mariner tells of an Australian couple’s five-year circumnavigation in a 12.2m. steel ketch, Onawa. The author, Joanna Hackett, was a self-proclaimed landlubber, and never imagined herself sailing of over the horizon in search of adventure, but having married someone who was keen to do just that, was willing to "give it a go". Her warts-and-all account, accompanied by a dry wit and an easy writing style made this book a sell-out when it first hit the shelves in 2001. While it is not a "how to" book, there are many useful hints here for the novice long-distance sailor, enough to make it essential reading for all those about to take off into the great unknown. At the same time, it is a fascinating read for the armchair traveler. The Hacketts visited more than 37 countries and these are brought to life with great descriptions, a little history, and some very funny anecdotes. From dodgy officials and the red tape waltz in Indonesia, a night in a Sri Lankan brothel and naked sailors in the Cyclades, to kangaroos in the Cape Verde Islands, snow skis and scrabble in the Spice Islands and suspect virgins in the Marquesas-there’s plenty to entertain the reader as the Hacketts make their way around the globe. Problems are solved, terrifying situations and bad weather are survived, and the ever-pragmatic Hackett manages to cope with everything the oceans can throw at her. If you want to know what it’s like to spend five years sailing around the world with your partner in a small yacht, and still remain friends, read this entertaining, amusing and interesting book. This eBook edition has been slightly amended from the original, and has several small additions.

Joanna Hackett was born in NSW, and as a child, lived on a sheep and wheat property about as far from the sea as you could imagine. She was educated in Victoria, and taught for 20 years in Australia and also in Britain. Together with her husband, she owned and managed a small business in Canberra before spending 5 years circumnavigating the world in a 13-metre yacht. "the Reluctant Mariner" resulted from that circumnavigation. This very successful non-fiction travel/adventure book was published by New Holland in 2001 and was an instant sell-out. The revised eBook version will delight those who missed out on the earlier edition. Joanna now lives on Macleay Island, in Queensland. Recent works include five small books on local history: “A Short History of the Bay Islands”, The Oyster Industry of Moreton Bay”, “The Campbell Family of Moreton Bay”, “The Queensland Acclimatisation Society and the Bay Islands” and “Early Farmers of the Bay Islands”. Joanna also revised "A Boat to Home", a local history book, for the RKLM Islands Heritage Group. At present, Joanna writes short stories for magazines, and has been published in Australian and English magazines. She is also working on an historical biography, “The Eighth Anniversary”, about a German doctor interned in Australia in the 1940s.