SoloMan: Alone at sea with God and Social Security (B&W) Paperback – February 8, 2016

Jack is the real deal. A capable sailor and a true world traveler, in fact he is a global man. Not just a story, this is a travel/cruising guide. A fantastic gift for any sailor or adventurer. Christmas is coming and these books (besides the wind) are his fuel. Support this national treasure! This book sails with me....Thanks Captain.

50% of photos don't show. VERY bad kindle version of otherwise terrific book with greate photos. Shame on you Kndle/Amazon!!

Not what I expected

Great read-- this amazing adventurer tells his story well.

I had the great pleasure of meeting Jack while he was recently passing through Santa Barbara - and was delighted to be able to buy a color copy of his book, "SoloMan: Alone at sea with God and Social Security". He is a gifted writer - and I have been a follower of his adventures since first reading about his voyages in Latitude38 magazine. If you love adventure, if you love the sea - if you yearn for distant shores - if you enjoy the combination of sea tales and international travel - all bound up within a delightful mix of intelligent and thoughtful writing - buy this book for yourself, but even better - buy it as a gift for those young people in your life in whom you wish to instill a lifelong passion for adventure..

Jack Van Ommen's personal story about sailing around the world in his 30' wooden sailboat is an inspirational saga. It concerns how one man's determination and his abiding faith in God transformed extreme challenge and dire circumstances into a life-affirming adventure. The author's self-effacing style relates his experience with grace and a genuine humility. The details, often quotidian, are the stuff of everyday life at sea, and yet, beneath their occasional banality lies the undeniable reality of a solo sailor willing to place himself at the mercy of Nature's greatest forces. That he accomplished this eight year voyage in his seventies, with very little money and armed only with his strong belief, makes 'SoloMan' all the more extraordinary as a testament to the power of the human spirit.

Great book, and I had the opportunity to meet the Solo Man! He is as interesting in person as his book is to read....truly a boating classic!

Jack van Ommen's 'Soloman' is much more a personal account rather than the story of adventures on the high seas in a small boat. Nevertheless it's an inspirational story for ocean cruisers as Jack van Ommen is not a yachtsman that follows trodden paths. He visits extraordinary destinations and even when he visits places well known to the cruising community he finds something special in the local people, culture and religion.

This is not just another book about long distance sailing. The author blends personal history, observations of cultures, religions and national backrounds in a very interesting and enjoyable way. A pleasure to read and also highly recommended to would be circumnavigators. It will not only wet their appetites but much more makes them think about what countries to visit and how to learn something from these visits. SoloMan's destinations are to a large extent of the 'beaten tracks' and will cause some rethinking of planning a world cruise!Jack van Ommen cruised around the globe in a 30 ft plywood sloop and had his fair share of bad weather, technical drama's and navigational puzzles. The way he writes about this side of his exploits is neither boring nor conflicting with the broader story of the voyage as such