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The Motion of the Ocean: 1 Small Boat, 2 Average Lovers, and a Woman's Search for the Meaning of Wife
The humorous true story of a woman who abandons her tidy life to honeymoon across the Pacific on a leaky, old boat—only to find that sailing 17,000 miles is easier than keeping her relationship off the rocks.
“Somewhere fifty miles off the coast of Oregon I realize the skipper of this very small ship is an asshole. He also happens to be my husband.”
While most thirty-somethings are climbing the corporate ladder or popping out babies, Janna Cawrse and her boyfriend Graeme take a different tack: they quit their jobs, tie the knot, and embark on a most unusual honeymoon cruise—813 days across the Pacific Ocean on a beat-up old sailboat. Their goal? Relaxation and relationship therapy. But the passage from First Date to First Mate is anything but smooth sailing. From the craggy Pacific Northwest coast to the tropical isles of Polynesia to the bustling ports of Asia, Janna and Graeme must share everything: rations of Top Ramen, sailboat sewage duty, a boat the size of a bedroom, and every minute of every day. They realize: If their marriage can survive this, it can survive anything! Like all great love stories, Janna and Graeme encounter storms and disasters along the way—and plenty of reasons for make-up sex. And they discover intimate secrets about each other, difficult truths about love, and skills they’ll need to keep their boat—and their relationship—afloat.
Written in the style of popular travelogues by J. Maarten Troost (The Sex Lives of Cannibals) and Elizabeth Gilbert (Eat, Pray, Love), Janna Cawrse Esarey gives readers a satisfying mix of soul-searching and romantic comedy while she seeks to answer this crucial question: When the waters get rough, will she—a novice sailor and spouse—abandon ship? Or will she learn to navigate the world—and the one relationship that will teach her about sex, love, and the meaning of “wife”?
“Somewhere fifty miles off the coast of Oregon I realize the skipper of this very small ship is an asshole. He also happens to be my husband.”
While most thirty-somethings are climbing the corporate ladder or popping out babies, Janna Cawrse and her boyfriend Graeme take a different tack: they quit their jobs, tie the knot, and embark on a most unusual honeymoon cruise—813 days across the Pacific Ocean on a beat-up old sailboat. Their goal? Relaxation and relationship therapy. But the passage from First Date to First Mate is anything but smooth sailing. From the craggy Pacific Northwest coast to the tropical isles of Polynesia to the bustling ports of Asia, Janna and Graeme must share everything: rations of Top Ramen, sailboat sewage duty, a boat the size of a bedroom, and every minute of every day. They realize: If their marriage can survive this, it can survive anything! Like all great love stories, Janna and Graeme encounter storms and disasters along the way—and plenty of reasons for make-up sex. And they discover intimate secrets about each other, difficult truths about love, and skills they’ll need to keep their boat—and their relationship—afloat.
Written in the style of popular travelogues by J. Maarten Troost (The Sex Lives of Cannibals) and Elizabeth Gilbert (Eat, Pray, Love), Janna Cawrse Esarey gives readers a satisfying mix of soul-searching and romantic comedy while she seeks to answer this crucial question: When the waters get rough, will she—a novice sailor and spouse—abandon ship? Or will she learn to navigate the world—and the one relationship that will teach her about sex, love, and the meaning of “wife”?
336 pages, Paperback
First published June 2, 2009
29 people are currently reading
878 people want to read
About the author
Janna Cawrse Esarey
4 books34 followersJanna Cawrse Esarey (rhymes with "banana of course yesiree") is the author of
The Motion of the Ocean: 1 Small Boat, 2 Average Lovers, & a Woman's Search for the Meaning of Wife
(Simon & Schuster 2009), the humorous, true story of a couple that chases love across the Pacific, only to find that navigating the world is easier than keeping their relationship off the rocks. Visit her at www.byjanna.com."
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 141 reviews
May 4, 2017
I really enjoyed the sailing aspects of this book. However the point of the story was the author finding the meaning of "wife". On some occasions she made some really great points that showed insight and growth. However a good majority of the 2 year sail seemed to be spent with her brooding and over analyzing( A habit she openly admits to.) To the reader though, it got old. I started to feel bad for her husband who seemed to be the type who wanted to soak in the adventure and exotic locations. The author is visiting atolls and islands that a majority of us could only dream of seeing, I wanted her to quit whining and nit-picking her marraige and enjoy it. She ended up sounding like a spoiled perfection seeking wife who took for granted the fantastic journey she was on. This may not be how it was in reality, but thats what the writing felt like. I found myself skipping pages, caring less about her "meaning of wife" and getting back to the travel/sailing. I found her writing style more "fun" than professional, as if she was writing in a journal. I wouldn't say it was a waste of time to read, but there are better stories out there.
January 11, 2010
I would surely have quit reading this book even before page 100 if it hadn’t been a book club selection. (I have a 100 page rule that if I don’t care how a book is going to end by the time I’m on page 100, I don’t finish it.) My chief complaints are that it isn’t terribly well-written and the author spent far more time complaining – about her husband, her life, her situation – than saying anything the slightest bit positive. This wore on me as the reader. I’m not a happy-go-lucky kind of girl, so I don’t long for everything I read to be light and airy (far from it, in fact). But I do like a bit of balance and a tad less whining.
In a book about two newlyweds (Janna and Graeme) circumnavigating the Pacific, I found myself wondering how the reader was supposed to believe that the author actually loved her husband. We had plenty of evidence that she found him annoying, frustrating, the list goes on, but little to prove she loved him. Only at the very end of the book were we given a teeny, tiny glimpse of actual love hiding beneath the complaints we’re pummeled with throughout.
I think part of my frustration with this book is that the author professes to be a deep thinker, but the book itself is not about deep thoughts, but selfish thoughts. Spending the vast majority of your time asking and re-asking yourself the same questions about your life, your direction and your spouse doesn’t make you a deep thinker. It makes you annoying.
I would have found this book much more enjoyable if the author had put a bit more emotion into her tale. I wanted to be swept away. I wanted to feel the weight of Janna’s teaching job through an anecdote or two about her students. I wanted to feel the pressure of Graeme’s job and how these things led them to want something more. But the writing rushed us through this. Janna didn’t take us there emotionally. She simply put us on the back of a motorcycle and hoped we’d hold on for the ride. I wanted to feel what she was feeling, but there was a surface quality to her writing. Cawrse Essarey told us what she felt instead of showing us, thereby keeping the real her hidden safely from view. But safe writing isn’t what compels me to read. Writing that is raw, honest and even ugly is a bigger draw. If that's not what Cawrse Esarey wanted this book to be, that's fine. But don't profess to be bearing your deepest, darkest secrets and then keep the reader at arm's length. Part of what made this book so frustrating to read was that it seemed the author couldn't decide what kind of book she was writing - was it memoir, travelogue, autobiography?
I think I’ve made clear who shouldn’t read this book – those who want some emotion to go along with their travelogue, those who want a narrator to use an authentic voice, those who want a book to make them look at themselves more closely. Who should read the book? If you’re in love with sailing, if you dream of the South Pacific, if your best friend is a whiner and you’re used to it, grab this book post-haste. Otherwise, don’t bother.
In a book about two newlyweds (Janna and Graeme) circumnavigating the Pacific, I found myself wondering how the reader was supposed to believe that the author actually loved her husband. We had plenty of evidence that she found him annoying, frustrating, the list goes on, but little to prove she loved him. Only at the very end of the book were we given a teeny, tiny glimpse of actual love hiding beneath the complaints we’re pummeled with throughout.
I think part of my frustration with this book is that the author professes to be a deep thinker, but the book itself is not about deep thoughts, but selfish thoughts. Spending the vast majority of your time asking and re-asking yourself the same questions about your life, your direction and your spouse doesn’t make you a deep thinker. It makes you annoying.
I would have found this book much more enjoyable if the author had put a bit more emotion into her tale. I wanted to be swept away. I wanted to feel the weight of Janna’s teaching job through an anecdote or two about her students. I wanted to feel the pressure of Graeme’s job and how these things led them to want something more. But the writing rushed us through this. Janna didn’t take us there emotionally. She simply put us on the back of a motorcycle and hoped we’d hold on for the ride. I wanted to feel what she was feeling, but there was a surface quality to her writing. Cawrse Essarey told us what she felt instead of showing us, thereby keeping the real her hidden safely from view. But safe writing isn’t what compels me to read. Writing that is raw, honest and even ugly is a bigger draw. If that's not what Cawrse Esarey wanted this book to be, that's fine. But don't profess to be bearing your deepest, darkest secrets and then keep the reader at arm's length. Part of what made this book so frustrating to read was that it seemed the author couldn't decide what kind of book she was writing - was it memoir, travelogue, autobiography?
I think I’ve made clear who shouldn’t read this book – those who want some emotion to go along with their travelogue, those who want a narrator to use an authentic voice, those who want a book to make them look at themselves more closely. Who should read the book? If you’re in love with sailing, if you dream of the South Pacific, if your best friend is a whiner and you’re used to it, grab this book post-haste. Otherwise, don’t bother.
August 16, 2013
I really enjoy travel memoirs, I like hearing other people tell tales of their crazy adventures in distant lands and their meshing with local culture. Combining that with my recent crazy work schedule and I thought this book would take me on a mental trip away from my 15 hour work days and into the clear blue waters of the Pacific. It did and it didn't...
The first part of this book was GREAT! I would award 4 full stars to the story of Janna Cawrse as she describes how she and her husband, Graeme Esarey, met a decade ago, their individual paths ebbed and flowed, until about 3 years ago they came back together and stuck this time. They finally decide to get married but only after deciding to take two years to sail from Seattle, down the coast of North America, across the Pacific Ocean, and then up through various Asian countries. Her stories are interesting and funny, describing the tasks that her and Graeme divide up (sometimes unequally) and the other cruisers they meet along the way.
Somewhere along the way (at the start of their travels in Asia) this transforms from a cute travel memoir to the dullest book ever. Two things happen: 1) Janna and Graeme start fighting. Not the bicker-then-have-great-make-up-sex fighting but the months-long-brooding-with-no-talking-and-no-resolution fighting. I understand that relationships have their ups and downs but it was such a stark contrast from the first half of the book that it simply made me want them to turn the boat around and go back to happier waters. And, she never actually tells you what occurs in these fights...you never really know what they are fighting about but she writes entire chapters about her self-reflection and thoughts on relationships. Sorry kids, not what I want to read.
2) They start visiting places they aren't really enjoying; the places are poverty-stricken, there are no other cruisers near them, and the waters are often polluted. This makes her writing even worse because she is complaining about where they are, her relationship, etc. I was about to chuck the book across the room with the last 100 pages to go but held out and can't really say I'm thrilled that I did. Then, there is resolution at the end but it is quick, poorly described, and next thing you know they're back in Seattle and have a couple kids.
If you want a good travel memoir, try something like An Embarrassment of Mangoes (which I LOVED) or The Sex Lives of Cannbals and perhaps leave this one behind...it was just too much relationship angst without resolution to be a light-hearted travel memoir.
The first part of this book was GREAT! I would award 4 full stars to the story of Janna Cawrse as she describes how she and her husband, Graeme Esarey, met a decade ago, their individual paths ebbed and flowed, until about 3 years ago they came back together and stuck this time. They finally decide to get married but only after deciding to take two years to sail from Seattle, down the coast of North America, across the Pacific Ocean, and then up through various Asian countries. Her stories are interesting and funny, describing the tasks that her and Graeme divide up (sometimes unequally) and the other cruisers they meet along the way.
Somewhere along the way (at the start of their travels in Asia) this transforms from a cute travel memoir to the dullest book ever. Two things happen: 1) Janna and Graeme start fighting. Not the bicker-then-have-great-make-up-sex fighting but the months-long-brooding-with-no-talking-and-no-resolution fighting. I understand that relationships have their ups and downs but it was such a stark contrast from the first half of the book that it simply made me want them to turn the boat around and go back to happier waters. And, she never actually tells you what occurs in these fights...you never really know what they are fighting about but she writes entire chapters about her self-reflection and thoughts on relationships. Sorry kids, not what I want to read.
2) They start visiting places they aren't really enjoying; the places are poverty-stricken, there are no other cruisers near them, and the waters are often polluted. This makes her writing even worse because she is complaining about where they are, her relationship, etc. I was about to chuck the book across the room with the last 100 pages to go but held out and can't really say I'm thrilled that I did. Then, there is resolution at the end but it is quick, poorly described, and next thing you know they're back in Seattle and have a couple kids.
If you want a good travel memoir, try something like An Embarrassment of Mangoes (which I LOVED) or The Sex Lives of Cannbals and perhaps leave this one behind...it was just too much relationship angst without resolution to be a light-hearted travel memoir.
June 27, 2017
I read this book many years ago, when my boyfriend (husband) and I had just started sailing. I laughed out loud more than just about any other book, and read entire pages to my husband out loud. Janna does a great job going past the glamor of cruising and taking us through the ups and downs of life on a boat at sea.
August 20, 2012
Janna and Graeme finally decide to wed and decide to kick start their new life together by quitting their jobs and taking a two year honeymoon voyage across the Pacific on Dragonfly, an old beat-up sailboat. Nothing reveals the strengths and weaknesses of a relationship like living in a confined space totally dependent on each other for 17,000 miles. This riveting book allows the reader to tag along on a heartfelt and sometimes dangerous adventure that many dream about but never attempt.
"Over the course of seventeen thousand miles she showed us--on night watches, in nasty blows, through the doldrums, under the Southern Cross--that little people can do big things simply by daring to try. Or, as she might say in her cheeky way, it's not the size of the ship that matters, it's the motion of the ocean."
"Over the course of seventeen thousand miles she showed us--on night watches, in nasty blows, through the doldrums, under the Southern Cross--that little people can do big things simply by daring to try. Or, as she might say in her cheeky way, it's not the size of the ship that matters, it's the motion of the ocean."
April 21, 2019
After reading several books with serious subject matter, this was a fun, fast read. As one who is rather fearful of the power of earth's oceans, I was in awe of this couple who chose to cross the Pacific in a sailboat. Based on her own experience, the author writes with humor and honesty as she struggles with self-examination and her feelings about her husband, her life, and her goals in life. I'd give it 3 1/2 stars.
July 4, 2009
This book came along at just the right time for me. My husband and I have been married just under a year, and we've been hitting exactly the same kind of issues (well, not exactly... we aren't at sea together:)). Thank you, Janna, for this wonderful book! I can't wait to read more of your work.
July 10, 2018
I barely got through this - I expected more of a travel memoir, but it’s mostly musings about the author’s marriage. I enjoyed most of the last 1/3 of the book where she actually has something to say about the locations she visits, but quickly returns to her real purpose. If you’re looking for something to indulge your inner traveler, book your trip elsewhere.
December 23, 2009
This author was really funny! I laughed out loud repeatedly! I'll be looking for more books by her!
June 5, 2023
I love historical events like this.
Boats and historical events are what make me love reading. Could you please share the sequel books of your series?
In fact, even though I started reading very late, I'm getting more and more immersed every day.
It is a great chance to read the books of important authors. I know that. I'm looking forward to your new books.
I am writing the importance of reading a book here for friends who want to read this book. I hope it will benefit sellers and customers...
Are the top 10 benefits of reading for all ages:
1. Reading Exercises the Brain
While reading, we have to remember different characters and settings that belong to a given story. Even if you enjoy reading a book in one sitting, you have to remember the details throughout the time you take to read the book. Therefore, reading is a workout for your brain that improves memory function.
2. Reading is a Form of (free) Entertainment
Did you know that most of the popular TV shows and movies are based on books? So why not indulge in the original form of entertainment by immersing yourself in reading. Most importantly, it’s free with your Markham Public Library card.
3. Reading Improves Concentration and the Ability to Focus
We can all agree that reading cannot happen without focus and in order to fully understand the story, we have to concentrate on each page that we read. In a world where gadgets are only getting faster and shortening our attention span, we need to constantly practice concentration and focus. Reading is one of the few activities that requires your undivided attention, therefore, improving your ability to concentrate.
4. Reading Improves Literacy
Have you ever read a book where you came across an unfamiliar word? Books have the power to improve your vocabulary by introducing you to new words. The more you read, the more your vocabulary grows, along with your ability to effectively communicate. Additionally, reading improves writing skills by helping the reader understand and learn different writing styles.
5. Reading Improves Sleep
By creating a bedtime routine that includes reading, you can signal to your body that it is time to sleep. Now, more than ever, we rely on increased screen time to get through the day. Therefore, by setting your phone aside and picking up a book, you are telling your brain that it is time to quiet down. Moreover, since reading helps you de-stress, doing so right before bed helps calm your mind and anxiety and improve the quality of sleep.
6. Reading Increases General Knowledge
Books are always filled with fun and interesting facts. Whether you read fiction or non-fictions, books have the ability to provide us with information we would’ve otherwise not known. Reading a variety of topics can make you a more knowledgeable person, in turn improving your conversation skills.
7. Reading is Motivational
By reading books about protagonists who have overcome challenges, we are oftentimes encouraged to do the same. The right book can motivate you to never give up and stay positive, regardless of whether it’s a romance novel or a self-help book.
https://numberoneboats.com/
https://theboatyacht.com/
https://theboatyacht.com/regal-leisur...
https://numberoneboats.com/regal-leis...
https://theboatyacht.com/leisure-23-f...
https://numberoneboats.com/leisure-23...
Boats and historical events are what make me love reading. Could you please share the sequel books of your series?
In fact, even though I started reading very late, I'm getting more and more immersed every day.
It is a great chance to read the books of important authors. I know that. I'm looking forward to your new books.
I am writing the importance of reading a book here for friends who want to read this book. I hope it will benefit sellers and customers...
Are the top 10 benefits of reading for all ages:
1. Reading Exercises the Brain
While reading, we have to remember different characters and settings that belong to a given story. Even if you enjoy reading a book in one sitting, you have to remember the details throughout the time you take to read the book. Therefore, reading is a workout for your brain that improves memory function.
2. Reading is a Form of (free) Entertainment
Did you know that most of the popular TV shows and movies are based on books? So why not indulge in the original form of entertainment by immersing yourself in reading. Most importantly, it’s free with your Markham Public Library card.
3. Reading Improves Concentration and the Ability to Focus
We can all agree that reading cannot happen without focus and in order to fully understand the story, we have to concentrate on each page that we read. In a world where gadgets are only getting faster and shortening our attention span, we need to constantly practice concentration and focus. Reading is one of the few activities that requires your undivided attention, therefore, improving your ability to concentrate.
4. Reading Improves Literacy
Have you ever read a book where you came across an unfamiliar word? Books have the power to improve your vocabulary by introducing you to new words. The more you read, the more your vocabulary grows, along with your ability to effectively communicate. Additionally, reading improves writing skills by helping the reader understand and learn different writing styles.
5. Reading Improves Sleep
By creating a bedtime routine that includes reading, you can signal to your body that it is time to sleep. Now, more than ever, we rely on increased screen time to get through the day. Therefore, by setting your phone aside and picking up a book, you are telling your brain that it is time to quiet down. Moreover, since reading helps you de-stress, doing so right before bed helps calm your mind and anxiety and improve the quality of sleep.
6. Reading Increases General Knowledge
Books are always filled with fun and interesting facts. Whether you read fiction or non-fictions, books have the ability to provide us with information we would’ve otherwise not known. Reading a variety of topics can make you a more knowledgeable person, in turn improving your conversation skills.
7. Reading is Motivational
By reading books about protagonists who have overcome challenges, we are oftentimes encouraged to do the same. The right book can motivate you to never give up and stay positive, regardless of whether it’s a romance novel or a self-help book.
https://numberoneboats.com/
https://theboatyacht.com/
https://theboatyacht.com/regal-leisur...
https://numberoneboats.com/regal-leis...
https://theboatyacht.com/leisure-23-f...
https://numberoneboats.com/leisure-23...
April 17, 2018
I had to start this book 3 times. I really thought the author was much younger by the way she reacted to life situations. This doesn't present much in the way of travelogue. Far more information about a relationship that she doesn't seem very intent on making whole. There seemed to be several pages about wanting to keep her "own identity" by keeping her own name and then not understanding why they were not becoming one as a couple. Then her solution to a foundering relationship is as juvenile as they come. Poor husband. Also, I do not care for the use of parenthesis non stop. I understand this was early in the writing career so maybe newer works will be better reads.
In all fairness, the description in the title doesn't say anything about detailing information about sailing the southern cross. It says it's a women searching for the meaning of Wife. That is what you get although I think she is still missing the point. It answered some questions for me as to why divorce is so rampant in today's world.
If a travelogue is what you are after, perhaps this is not the book you are after.
In all fairness, the description in the title doesn't say anything about detailing information about sailing the southern cross. It says it's a women searching for the meaning of Wife. That is what you get although I think she is still missing the point. It answered some questions for me as to why divorce is so rampant in today's world.
If a travelogue is what you are after, perhaps this is not the book you are after.
January 7, 2018
I started reading this when it caught my eye on the bookshelf of a home we were renting for a week. Couldn’t finish it there, so picked it up again after Christmas with a library loaner.
Agree with some of the other reviewers, could have done with a lot less introspection and whining about whether or not they had the “perfect” marriage and more of a travelogue for visiting these tropical locations - ex: she completely left out Central America she admitted.
I have to say, I was actually embarrassed at times at how much personal information was shared - I almost felt like I was reading someone’s diary without permission.
That being said, much of this is funny, entertaining and informative - a good escape into tropical “paradise” during a cold winter in Seattle!
Agree with some of the other reviewers, could have done with a lot less introspection and whining about whether or not they had the “perfect” marriage and more of a travelogue for visiting these tropical locations - ex: she completely left out Central America she admitted.
I have to say, I was actually embarrassed at times at how much personal information was shared - I almost felt like I was reading someone’s diary without permission.
That being said, much of this is funny, entertaining and informative - a good escape into tropical “paradise” during a cold winter in Seattle!
October 5, 2017
In a word, Quirky; but also funny & at times young. A novel of maturity.
"..he holds my gaze as a sort of underline." Page 114
"When I was young and foolish, I almost took this as a point of pride, figuring there was something valuable in standing up for one's beliefs, or fighting the good fight. But there's also something to being tactful and respectful and really listening to others." Page 203
"if there's one thing I can's stomach, it's unfairness." Page 203
"The wind off the beach sifts our words like flour." Page 232
"Growing old is a gift." Page 237
"..he holds my gaze as a sort of underline." Page 114
"When I was young and foolish, I almost took this as a point of pride, figuring there was something valuable in standing up for one's beliefs, or fighting the good fight. But there's also something to being tactful and respectful and really listening to others." Page 203
"if there's one thing I can's stomach, it's unfairness." Page 203
"The wind off the beach sifts our words like flour." Page 232
"Growing old is a gift." Page 237
April 22, 2020
Het eerste deel van het boek met plezier gelezen. Janna beschrijft haar zeilreis over de halve wereld met haar man Graeme, net na hun huwelijk. Ze hebben mooie avonturen en er is leuke interactie tussen hun twee.
Het laatste deel van het boek is veel minder interessant. Ze klaagt over haar man en hun ruzies en dat alle nieuwigheid eraf is. Dat wordt na een tijdje echt vervelend. Aan het eind komt ineens alles goed, zonder duidelijke reden.
Het laatste deel van het boek is veel minder interessant. Ze klaagt over haar man en hun ruzies en dat alle nieuwigheid eraf is. Dat wordt na een tijdje echt vervelend. Aan het eind komt ineens alles goed, zonder duidelijke reden.
August 21, 2017
I loved this story! It was an adventure, sailing, love story all rolled into one, and it captivated me the entire way through. Janna was very open about the challenges of sailing around the world as her honeymoon adventure and gave me a big picture idea as to what it might look like. The South Pacific truly does sound marvelous.
July 19, 2017
Reading this I found myself craving an adventure, and dreading the travel part of traveling. Am I brave enough to be alone with one person for over a year? Am I brave enough to learn how to sail a boat? Brutally funny, brutally honest.
February 14, 2018
Such a fun read! I loved this candid account of a young couple’s cruising life and look forward to more from Janna Cawrse Esray.
April 22, 2018
Wow, I read this on a sailboat passage and thought, “THIS IS MY LIFE!” She nails it!
July 1, 2019
Such a funny and poignant book. Don't hear much about it but I loved it!!!
November 25, 2021
Loved this book so much I got my friends and family to read it. It’s a good primer also for newlyweds. And so funny!
December 5, 2023
I got off to a strong start and then lost interest about halfway through. Did they ever make it around the world?! 🤣
October 2, 2016
Cute book. I love her husband's view on love.
July 19, 2015
I never knew before I worked on Big Waves, Small Boat, Two Kids: A Family Sailing Adventure that I apparently am drawn to sailing memoirs. I've got another, Sea Change: Alone Across the Atlantic in a Wooden Boat, waiting for me on the shelf, too.
As someone who is prone to motion sicknesses and also somewhat risk-averse, I don't think I'd ever be able to live on the water for an extended period of time. But I'm sure glad other brave souls have written about it so I can experience it vicariously! There is just something to intriguing to me about being surrounded by the mystery of the open water and living as simply as possible in close quarters with other human beings -- an interesting laboratory for the dynamics of human relationship if ever there was one.
This book does not disappoint on that scale. Janna and her husband, who have gone through ten years of an on-again, off-again relationship, set sail after their marriage and spend their first year as husband and wife on the ocean. It serves as a test of their commitment as well as a catalyst to help them both discern what they want out of their relationship with one another.
Despite the various exotic settings, anyone who has had a go at a long-term relationship will be able to relate to Janna's musings, to their attempts to "schedule" sex, to the way they grate on each other's nerves and then miss the other when they are apart. Those looking for a travel memoir should be satisfied, too, although Janna only goes into detail on a fraction of the ports they landed in. I think this was a good choice -- I would rather have fewer experiences in depth than feel as if we were skimming the surface of all of them. But the setting I loved most was the boat itself, the descriptions of the open water and the weather and night watches. This is a foreign location more intriguing to me than any other country in the world.
Although I found myself constantly wanting to dive into this book at the beginning, it did start to feel a little long around the halfway point, and the whole thing might get a little trying if you don't like Janna's writing "voice." At times it felt unpolished, but that also added to its charm for me. It felt like an in-the-moment travel log rather than a refined reflection full of "perspective."
If you read and enjoyed this one, I definitely recommend "Small Boat, Big Waves" (mentioned above), which takes the next step and explores not only sailing as a married couple, but as parents of young children.
As someone who is prone to motion sicknesses and also somewhat risk-averse, I don't think I'd ever be able to live on the water for an extended period of time. But I'm sure glad other brave souls have written about it so I can experience it vicariously! There is just something to intriguing to me about being surrounded by the mystery of the open water and living as simply as possible in close quarters with other human beings -- an interesting laboratory for the dynamics of human relationship if ever there was one.
This book does not disappoint on that scale. Janna and her husband, who have gone through ten years of an on-again, off-again relationship, set sail after their marriage and spend their first year as husband and wife on the ocean. It serves as a test of their commitment as well as a catalyst to help them both discern what they want out of their relationship with one another.
Despite the various exotic settings, anyone who has had a go at a long-term relationship will be able to relate to Janna's musings, to their attempts to "schedule" sex, to the way they grate on each other's nerves and then miss the other when they are apart. Those looking for a travel memoir should be satisfied, too, although Janna only goes into detail on a fraction of the ports they landed in. I think this was a good choice -- I would rather have fewer experiences in depth than feel as if we were skimming the surface of all of them. But the setting I loved most was the boat itself, the descriptions of the open water and the weather and night watches. This is a foreign location more intriguing to me than any other country in the world.
Although I found myself constantly wanting to dive into this book at the beginning, it did start to feel a little long around the halfway point, and the whole thing might get a little trying if you don't like Janna's writing "voice." At times it felt unpolished, but that also added to its charm for me. It felt like an in-the-moment travel log rather than a refined reflection full of "perspective."
If you read and enjoyed this one, I definitely recommend "Small Boat, Big Waves" (mentioned above), which takes the next step and explores not only sailing as a married couple, but as parents of young children.
April 22, 2010
My husband & I have sailed together for three weeks at a time and this is a great account of what it is like to be alone with your spouse discovering new places and spaces! I loved this book. There is a fabulous quote in the middle of the book, you'll know it when you read it.
Here are some reviews:
"Equipped with nothing but an old boat and a new marriage, Janna Cawrse Esarey recounts her two and a half years at sea with wry humor, keen observations, and descriptions vivid enough to satisfy even the most seasoned traveler. As Janna and her husband cross the globe, they learn that sometimes relationships are the trickiest waters...yet all storms can be weathered with enough courage and determination. The Motion of the Ocean is the quintessential summer read for anyone seeking an adventure in life, love, or self-discovery."-- Jen Lancaster, author of Bitter is the New Black
"Most of us would love to quit our jobs and sail across the globe, but very few of us have the guts -- or the sea legs. Fortunately for us armchair adventurers, Janna Cawrse Esarey not only took this journey, she took great notes. The result is a funny, honest tale of how one woman found her comfort zone -- with the sea, with herself, and with the notion of happily ever after."-- Michelle Goodman, author of My So-Called Freelance Life and The Anti 9-to-5 Guide
"I didn't think it was possible to write a 'new' cruising yarn. However, Janna Cawrse Esarey has done it -- from a female sailor's perspective. This isn't a story of a cruise; it is an insightfully-written story of a maturing relationship. Best of all, her pen is as sharp as her wit. She pulls no punches. I laughed and cried -- and saw myself on every page."-- Cap'n Fatty Goodlander, Editor-at-Large of Cruising World magazine
"An edgy, unique style and badass sense of humor."-- Tania Aebi, author of Maiden Voyage and the First American Woman and Youngest Person to Sail Around the World Alone
"On her honeymoon Janna Cawrse Esarey and her fisherman husband set sail in pursuit of her childhood dream....Motion of the Ocean is a fresh and honest story on many levels. It's an entertaining read for those who enjoy a voyaging story or are contemplating an adventure, though in the end it's not about achieving the sailing dream -- it's a love story in which Janna discovers how to live and enjoy life."-- Amanda Swan Neal and John Neal, authors of The Offshore Crusising Companion
Here are some reviews:
"Equipped with nothing but an old boat and a new marriage, Janna Cawrse Esarey recounts her two and a half years at sea with wry humor, keen observations, and descriptions vivid enough to satisfy even the most seasoned traveler. As Janna and her husband cross the globe, they learn that sometimes relationships are the trickiest waters...yet all storms can be weathered with enough courage and determination. The Motion of the Ocean is the quintessential summer read for anyone seeking an adventure in life, love, or self-discovery."-- Jen Lancaster, author of Bitter is the New Black
"Most of us would love to quit our jobs and sail across the globe, but very few of us have the guts -- or the sea legs. Fortunately for us armchair adventurers, Janna Cawrse Esarey not only took this journey, she took great notes. The result is a funny, honest tale of how one woman found her comfort zone -- with the sea, with herself, and with the notion of happily ever after."-- Michelle Goodman, author of My So-Called Freelance Life and The Anti 9-to-5 Guide
"I didn't think it was possible to write a 'new' cruising yarn. However, Janna Cawrse Esarey has done it -- from a female sailor's perspective. This isn't a story of a cruise; it is an insightfully-written story of a maturing relationship. Best of all, her pen is as sharp as her wit. She pulls no punches. I laughed and cried -- and saw myself on every page."-- Cap'n Fatty Goodlander, Editor-at-Large of Cruising World magazine
"An edgy, unique style and badass sense of humor."-- Tania Aebi, author of Maiden Voyage and the First American Woman and Youngest Person to Sail Around the World Alone
"On her honeymoon Janna Cawrse Esarey and her fisherman husband set sail in pursuit of her childhood dream....Motion of the Ocean is a fresh and honest story on many levels. It's an entertaining read for those who enjoy a voyaging story or are contemplating an adventure, though in the end it's not about achieving the sailing dream -- it's a love story in which Janna discovers how to live and enjoy life."-- Amanda Swan Neal and John Neal, authors of The Offshore Crusising Companion
February 1, 2017
On my way home last month, on my first of two flights, I was seated next to one of those couples who snipe. She whined when he offered to take her bag. He grumbled that he didn't have enough space (to be fair to him, the legroom was seriously inadequate for someone of his height). They argued about who had the camera and whether or not they had good enough cameras and so on and so forth. I buried my nose in my e-reader and did my best to ignore them.
For a while, reading this, I wondered whether that was the kind of relationship I was reading about here...that sniping, unhappy, don't-really-want-to-be-around-them relationship. And then Esarey herself brought up this idea of 'the Bickersons', which is to say couples who bicker bicker bicker.
I'm not actually trying to evaluate their relationship based on a book, but that did make me think about, well, what in the writing/structure gave me that 'Bickerson' impression. And I think it's this: we know right up front that theirs is a relationship that has had serious ups and downs and long periods of not-togetherness, and there is that will-they-won't-they sense. I didn't really get a great sense of Graeme, so I couldn't really root for him, and I got really sick of the constant use of 'shitfuck', so I wasn't really rooting for Esarey either. (Which is to say: the voice wasn't a great fit for me.)
On a broader note, I found that I was far more interested in the material when they were at sea, dealing with the boat and learning to manage things, than I was in the material about them being moored at various docks and hanging out with other boaters and so on and so forth. Not sure if that's a question of tension or type of tension or just straight-up reading interests.
Not really a style of writing that worked for me, which might say less about the book than it does about me...but I'm pretty happy to move on to other things.
For a while, reading this, I wondered whether that was the kind of relationship I was reading about here...that sniping, unhappy, don't-really-want-to-be-around-them relationship. And then Esarey herself brought up this idea of 'the Bickersons', which is to say couples who bicker bicker bicker.
I'm not actually trying to evaluate their relationship based on a book, but that did make me think about, well, what in the writing/structure gave me that 'Bickerson' impression. And I think it's this: we know right up front that theirs is a relationship that has had serious ups and downs and long periods of not-togetherness, and there is that will-they-won't-they sense. I didn't really get a great sense of Graeme, so I couldn't really root for him, and I got really sick of the constant use of 'shitfuck', so I wasn't really rooting for Esarey either. (Which is to say: the voice wasn't a great fit for me.)
On a broader note, I found that I was far more interested in the material when they were at sea, dealing with the boat and learning to manage things, than I was in the material about them being moored at various docks and hanging out with other boaters and so on and so forth. Not sure if that's a question of tension or type of tension or just straight-up reading interests.
Not really a style of writing that worked for me, which might say less about the book than it does about me...but I'm pretty happy to move on to other things.
February 2, 2016
I loved The Motion of the Ocean. For me, Janna Cawrse Esarey’s book about “1 small boat, 2 average lovers, and a woman’s search for the meaning of life” was really interesting because it was partly a travel memoir, partly the story of a marriage, and mostly about the journey of a young woman into maturity. Janna’s a bit narcissistic and self-absorbed, but that’s the way memoirs are. I liked her honesty about what was going on with her, and I could relate to it even though she’s twenty years younger than me. The background of a trip from Seattle, down the American coastline and out across the Pacific Ocean into Hong Kong and all that happens on the way is a real treat for this wanderer. This is a book that I will refer to later, in my writing. There were some good one-liners, and Esarey is a good writer, which I appreciate. The paragraphs I’ll copy here are long, and so are her Woolfian sentences: “My husband is not tidy. Of course, this is something I knew about him from living together. But back then he used our second bedroom as his closet, and its permanently closed door successfully hid the mountain of dirty/clean clothes (you never really knew) that cascaded from hangers to hamper to floor, into foothills around the room. There are no permanently closed doors on a thirty-five-foot sailboat.” I marked that just because I enjoyed the writing.
May 1, 2010
This wasn't at all what I was expecting when I picked it up, and it's difficult to review it for what it actually was, rather than what I wanted it to be. Had I read the notes on the back of the book, I'd most likely have stayed away.
I wanted a travelogue, an adventure tale, a story of what it's like to cross the ocean in a sailboat. What I got was a lot of navel-gazing, a lot of detail about the author's marginally unhappy marriage, backstory about the relationship, and more than I ever needed to know about the trauma that is deciding to keep one's name, change one's name, or hyphenate. I wasn't knocked out by the writing- it wasn't bad writing, but it struck me as bloggy, chatty, casual plus there were some hugely annoying quirks- like instead of saying 'biked' the author always said 'pedal pedal pedaled'. There were whole chapters devoted to musings about the marriage, chapters where I could have been reading about the places they were mooring, but no.
There were some parts I enjoyed, when they were working together on the boat, or when a storm was coming up, or when the action moved out of the author's head. There was just too much soul-searching and not enough sailing for me.
Not my cup of tea, in short.
I wanted a travelogue, an adventure tale, a story of what it's like to cross the ocean in a sailboat. What I got was a lot of navel-gazing, a lot of detail about the author's marginally unhappy marriage, backstory about the relationship, and more than I ever needed to know about the trauma that is deciding to keep one's name, change one's name, or hyphenate. I wasn't knocked out by the writing- it wasn't bad writing, but it struck me as bloggy, chatty, casual plus there were some hugely annoying quirks- like instead of saying 'biked' the author always said 'pedal pedal pedaled'. There were whole chapters devoted to musings about the marriage, chapters where I could have been reading about the places they were mooring, but no.
There were some parts I enjoyed, when they were working together on the boat, or when a storm was coming up, or when the action moved out of the author's head. There was just too much soul-searching and not enough sailing for me.
Not my cup of tea, in short.
July 12, 2009
This book is more than just a memoir, more than a travelogue, it is a story of the beginning of a marriage and all that entails - but instead of beginning it in a home in an up and coming neighborhood as many newlyweds do, Janna and Graeme decide to take a two-year honeymoon from Seattle to the Galapagos and on through the South Pacific islands to Hong Kong. Their journey is threatened by everything from pirates to typhoons, but the real threat to their happiness lies in themselves.
I so enjoyed this story. It was one I truly didn't want to end. Janna tells this very personal story in a way many can relate to, whether their living on land, or following their sailing dreams. I enjoyed finding out how the sailing community works (cruisers often travel somewhat together, arriving at the same port and socializing). The crossing was a lonely one at times, and it was great to see Janna come into her own as a sailor.
I loved her writing and hope that since she and Graeme are living on land now, perhaps she can get that novel published. If this book is any indication of her talents, she has a great writing career ahead of her.
Highly recommended.
I so enjoyed this story. It was one I truly didn't want to end. Janna tells this very personal story in a way many can relate to, whether their living on land, or following their sailing dreams. I enjoyed finding out how the sailing community works (cruisers often travel somewhat together, arriving at the same port and socializing). The crossing was a lonely one at times, and it was great to see Janna come into her own as a sailor.
I loved her writing and hope that since she and Graeme are living on land now, perhaps she can get that novel published. If this book is any indication of her talents, she has a great writing career ahead of her.
Highly recommended.
July 4, 2011
This is a smart, delightful read about newlyweds that decide to follow their wildest dreams, take a couple of years off from work and sail to foreign ports on their honeymoon. It’s a moving memoir that reads like fiction. Although it’s an adventure story about sailing, the heart of the story is about love and marriage; the passion as well as the doubts that live within any relationship. Janna Cawrse’s writing style is clear and unhindered as she allows the reader a glimpse into her inner most thoughts, inspiring introspection and reflection, not just on relationships, but also on the cultural differences of the people they encounter along the way. The book has humorous moments and poignant ones as may be expected; this couple is living at sea, in close quarters, for an extended amount of time in a boat that is seaworthy but not entirely trustworthy, posing challenges of its own. In summary a perfect beach read; light and entertaining, but also great for anyone who longs to take an adventure like this. It’s also great for anyone who enjoys reading about relationships as I think this was the true strength of this story.
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