Canvas Flying, Seagulls Crying

After Justin and Linda Tyers lost everything in a devastating house fire, they rebuilt their lives by building a classic wooden yacht from scratch – starting by felling the trees. This story was told in their first book, Phoenix from the Ashes.

This sequel follows their voyage from the Scottish Islands across to Ireland, down the Irish Sea to Cornwall and thence to Brittany, meeting interesting, curious and larger-than-life characters along the way. Justin has an unceasing ability to attract the nearest eccentric wherever he goes, a brilliant eye for natural humour in any situation, as well as a wonderful, lyrical turn of phrase.

The book is peppered with amusingly told anecdotes of everyday cruising life and packed with the kind of inevitable dramatic incidents that happen when you have two inexperienced sailors trying to man a yacht that's really too big for them: running aground, losing a guest overboard and almost being shipwrecked – more than once.

This is not a tale of intrepid on-the-edge sailing; it is a gentle, endearing and frequently amusing account of the sort of voyaging most cruisers can relate to and will greatly appreciate.