The Breath of Angels

Beattie's humor is delightful and he's a good storyteller. His love, longing, anger, and frustration are described with candor that is eloquent....His descriptions of the people who befriend him and the land and seascape are vivid....This is a book that will be enjoyed by armchair travelers who have never been aboard a boat and have no desire to do so. For those of us with a passion for boats and travel it's a book to savor. Buy several copies, you'll want to share it with all your friends. * Coastal Cruising * The Breath Of Angels is an action-packed tale of the sea and a story of love and longing. Even as a teenager, John Beattie felt drawn to the ocean, but it was 25 years befor e his dream of circumnavigating the globe in his 35-foot yacht, Warrior Queen, could beg in to come true. After sailing from Ireland to the Canary Islands, and facing difficulties with weather, crew, and ship, John was forced to abandon his goal of circumnavigation. However, he also decided he was ready to tackle the daunting transatlantic passage alone. Along the way, he discovered what he had been searching for: the rapture of the ocean. His voyage continued along the South American coast and into the depths of the rain forests via uncharted tributaries. The adventure reached a stirring climax during his return voyage from Venezuela. One day at dawn, hundreds of miles from land, he spotted a man dying of thirst aboard a drifting open boat, a man given one last slender chance to live. The Breath Of Angels is a riveting, powerful, more-dramatic-than-fiction, true biographical story of life and death upon the open sea. * Midwest Book Review *