Desperate Voyage

Rating:
Summary: Wow!
Review: A fascinating tale of a man who really wanted to get out of Panama. You won't believe its a true story.

Rating:
Summary: Compelling, Honest, Entertaining
Review: An amazing story of bad judgement and bad luck. This is a great read. Very Honest, Very compelling Story.

Rating:
Summary: John Caldwell and Desperate Voyage
Review: David,

Ran across you review of Desperate Voyage on Amazon.com and saw your question about whatever happened to John Caldwell.
Sadly, he passed away in 1998. I can tell you in 1997 he was still going very strong, because I bought my copy of the book directly from him -- he even graciously signed it -- when I visited his island home in the Carribbean. The book lays out his love of life and adventure and his ability to achieve seemingly impossible tasks, and what you read is exactly how he came across in person too. Apparently Mary was worth it. They married and sailed throughout the Carribbean for years before settling on the very unpromising Prune Island in the Grenadines. Caldwell signed a 198 year lease with the St. Vincent government for the island and then they spent decades transforming the bug-infested island into a beautiful, rustic and exclusive "get away from it all and enjoy the simple life" resort. The island, near Bequi and St. Vincent, is now called Palm Island in honor of the palm trees planted all over the island (palms aren't native to the Carribbean, but Caldwell acted like Johnny Appleseed and planted palms throughout the neighboring islands).

Now the review: Caldwell's story lacks any literary pretensions. Instead it's a straightforward first person account of a tremendous (mis)adventure -- the kind no sane person would (or could) make today! You can't help but root for him and wonder how things will turn out. For me the story has even greater appeal because I had a chance to briefly meet Caldwell and knew his story wasn't a brief abberration forced on him by wartime -- but instead was just one chapter in the long life of a very nice man who clearly marched to the beat of a different drummer.

- Jim

Rating:
Summary: John Caldwell- explorer and navigator
Review: I found a copy of Desperate Voyage at a second hand book sale at Goolwa, South Australia. It was a well loved copy, someone's obvious treasure. Once I opened it, I couldn't put it down.
A fantastic story, with some excellent twists and turns. It now occupies pride of place in my bookcase.

But what I'm dying to know, is:
Was it all worth it ? Is John Caldwell still alive, still married, and was Mary worth all the trouble and sacrifice ?
And how did his health hold up afterwards ?
If anyone knows the answer, please email me [e-mail]
Thankyou. Terrific story, but a really expensive way to get to Australia !!.

Rating:
Summary: John Caldwell- explorer and navigator
Review: I found a copy of Desperate Voyage at a second hand book sale at Goolwa, South Australia. It was a well loved copy, someone's obvious treasure. Once I opened it, I couldn't put it down.
A fantastic story, with some excellent twists and turns. It now occupies pride of place in my bookcase.

But what I'm dying to know, is:
Was it all worth it ? Is John Caldwell still alive, still married, and was Mary worth all the trouble and sacrifice ?
And how did his health hold up afterwards ?
If anyone knows the answer, please email me [e-mail]
Thankyou. Terrific story, but a really expensive way to get to Australia !!.

Rating:
Summary: First you shake your head....then cry
Review: John Caldwell was desperate to get back to the woman that war had seperated him from. Unable to find an easy way back home, the inexperienced sailor figures he could just sail home across the Pacific.
The first two thirds of the book will leave experienced sailors constantly shaking their heads at his often absurd decisions. All through the trip though, you find yourself getting closer and eventually cheering him on to succeed. When he finally succeeds (I'm not giving it away, after all, he lives to tell the story!) with the heartfelt generosity of people from a wonderfully innocent world, you can't help but feel joy and think "Wow, what a great story".

Rating:
Summary: Caution Thrown To The Wind
Review: So many times I wanted to reach into the book and stop Mr. Caldwell from making some terrible mistake! You'll marvel at his abilities and be awestruck by his errors.

I had the pleasure of meeting James Caldwell while sailing in the Caribbean in 1985. I couldn't help but buy my copy of "Desperate Voyage" from him after our conversation. I'm delighted to see that it's available from Amazon and that other sailors and adventurers have had the chance to read this tome.

I had to remind myself that if I'd been the same age as when he made this journey I might not have done as well.
One thing is clear - Never invite a SHARK to dinner!

Best regards,
Tom

Rating:
Summary: One of my favourite books
Review: The most remarkable thing about this story is that it's true! John Caldwell became an adventurer by accident. He just wanted to get across the Pacific Ocean to his new wife, and tried to do it the easy way by ship. Unfortunately there were no ships going his way, so he bought his own - a small wooden yacht. His (mis)adventures start as soon as he sets foot on his boat and don't end until he almost dies in his attempt to reach his destination. Caldwell's courage in facing challenge was born out of naivete - he only had a vague notion of what he was taking on. This makes his achievements all the more extraordinary because his lack of experience only left him with a kind of animal resourcefulness to get him through. He blunders from hilarious escapade to life-threatening drama and back again in an amazing journey that packs more adventure into a few months than most of us get (or want) in a lifetime. His sense of humour and down-to-earth style make This book a delightful read. "Desperate Voyage" undoubtedly has appeal to yachties like myself. But I've lent it to several friends including some landlubbers, and all have thoroughly enjoyed it.