Once Upon A Gypsy Moon: An Improbable Voyage and One Man's Yearning for Redemption

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Once Upon A Gypsy Moon: An Improbable Voyage and One Man's Yearning for Redemption

by Michael C. Hurley (Goodreads Author)

3.44 of 5 stars 3.44 · rating details · 34 ratings · 22 reviews

Michael C. Hurley, a noted trial attorney who once worked as a professional sailor, returns to the sea to give us a thought-provoking memoir of a man’s yearning for redemption and renewal in the wake of infidelity, divorce, and failure. The story begins as Hurley leaves Annapolis, Maryland, aboard an aging, 32-foot sloop, the Gypsy Moon. Three years after hismarriage ended...more

Hardcover, 256 pages

Published April 16th 2013 by Hachette Book Group / Center Street (first published 2013)

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May 20, 2013 Travis rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

My Review from the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography, which you can find here: http://bit.ly/116DGr3

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Once upon a time, I came up with a half-baked notion to sail around the world. It didn't matter to me that my only sailing experience up to that point was on a Hobie Cat on Lake Erie. My self-confidence at that time--I was a Junior at Prescott College in northern Arizona--was infectious enough to make other people at least entertain the possibility that I wasn't completely nuts. I re...more My Review from the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography, which you can find here: http://bit.ly/116DGr3

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Once upon a time, I came up with a half-baked notion to sail around the world. It didn't matter to me that my only sailing experience up to that point was on a Hobie Cat on Lake Erie. My self-confidence at that time--I was a Junior at Prescott College in northern Arizona--was infectious enough to make other people at least entertain the possibility that I wasn't completely nuts. I remember precisely where my sailing dreams ended. I'd convinced a young lady to take to the seas with me, and we drove together to visit a thirty-six foot sailboat resting in a field on a small farm in Chino Valley. I spoke the the owner of the boat, we climbed aboard, we talked about the price and the work the boat needed, and the owner left us alone to make our decision. We stood together on the deck and looked out over the bow--I suppose both of us were imagining the Arizona desert to instead be the Pacific Ocean--and it suddenly dawned on me that I was expected to purchase this boat. I realized the enormous and thankless task ahead of me if I actually wanted to make the trip happen, and I abruptly came to my senses. But I digress.

For those who understand the urge to leave the landlocked life behind, there are ample rewards to be found in Michael C. Hurley's new memoir Once Upon a Gypsy Moon, which describes the author's solo adventure to Nassau in the Bahamas and beyond. It's not quite a trip around the world, but Hurley does a wonderful job of describing the perils of solo sailing, the determination that such a trip requires, and just how long such a dream must sometimes be held in order to come to fruition. Hurley was first bitten by the sailing bug at the age of eleven but only set off on his trip more than three decades later, when his life was in a state of mild crisis due to a recent divorce and a series of professional and financial setbacks.

Hurley makes for a personable traveling companion, and Gypsy Moon is well written, but I didn't feel like I was the target audience for this book. Hurley's Christianity plays a large role in the text, as do his generational musings, and online dating. It's makes for a touching and engaging read, but readers who share Hurley's concerns about God, fatherhood, infidelity, career, and finding love in early middle age would more closely connect to the book, especially the large sections which don't take place on board the Gypsy Moon.

All in all, Hurley has crafted an inspiring, heartfelt and honest read about accomplishing a long-held dream, which is especially recommended for readers who appreciate inspirational and confessional writing from a Christian viewpoint.
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Apr 11, 2013 CeCe rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

After reading the blurb for this book, I was excited. A 2-year odyssey! How fantastic. I grew up in a family of sailors and was expecting to read an exciting book much like that of another several year -long sailing journey of which I am deeply familiar (I do not want to name names because this is not the most positive review and I do not want to attach my opinion onto anyone else’s – even through a remote reference). Much to my disappointment, this “voyage” turns out was a sail from Maryland to...more After reading the blurb for this book, I was excited. A 2-year odyssey! How fantastic. I grew up in a family of sailors and was expecting to read an exciting book much like that of another several year -long sailing journey of which I am deeply familiar (I do not want to name names because this is not the most positive review and I do not want to attach my opinion onto anyone else’s – even through a remote reference). Much to my disappointment, this “voyage” turns out was a sail from Maryland to Nassau. The trip took so long to complete because Michael allowed for frequent sailing breaks making his adventure seem more like a weekend hobby that he would pick up and put down at his leisure. While admittedly biased, I was not impressed.

Once Upon a Gypsy Moon started off nicely. I found myself being pulled into the story immediately by the well-crafted sentences. Unfortunately, it mostly went downhill from there.

The writing style which I originally appreciated began feeling very speechy and self-help-esc.

This book is supposed to be about his journey and revelations after a period of great failure in his life but he spends much of the book bragging about his previous achievements (including but not limited to: first place riding ribbons, being an amazing three point shot, and having a successful law practice). Where is the humility? I found the author came across as self-important even while he was being self-degrading.

Amidst it all, he signs up for online dating and meets a woman with whom he falls in love and marries. Again, this trip is a reflection on his recent failures which most importantly includes divorce due to his infidelity and he is ONLINE DATING? While I am happy that he found love and wish him all the success on his second marriage, I had a lot of trouble wrapping my head around that.

Finally, I am not only a young adult (less than 30 years of age) but also a child of an alcoholic – two groups he likes to reference in this memoir. I found his generalizations not only completely off base but downright insulting. Michael made a lot of generalizations throughout this book about various groups which I found went against his supposed religious devotion. Important to note: he seems to hold a particular disdain for the rich which he brought up constantly. It seemed to me that he had an almost desperate need to separate himself from that particular group.

He has a very poetic voice and speaks eloquently of the sailor philosophy which I have heard much about before but never quiet grasped. It is really such a shame because this book – this story – has a lot of potential. There are even some real gems if you take the time to weed through all the self-righteous crap.

I am giving this book two star (as opposed to one) because this is probably a perfect read for a very specific audience – hypocritically religious, pretentious, older men. If that's you this book comes out April 16th.

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Apr 13, 2013 Cheryl rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I was very excited to read about Mr. Hurley and his story sailing upon the Gypsy Moon. I was expecting to read more about sailing. Which I did get some but not a lot. Just like a memoir I do get to know all about Mr. Hurley and his life. From growing up to why his marriage to his first wife fell apart due to infidelity. Mr. Hurley did recognize that it was his fault and accepted it. This I thought was great that he did and I liked him for it.

However after a while I grew weary of the steady pace...more

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Mar 03, 2013 Sue rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Once Upon A Gypsy Moon by Michael C Hurley.

I suspect the target audience for this novel/memoir is really men. It is written by a man and feels like a conversation with a man, for want of a better expression.
The synopsis suggested a story of a man who had gone through a divorce and was struggling with who he was in the wake of the divorce. That much is true. The book is penned by Michael Hurley as his memoir of a time in his life when he was in crisis with himself.
Very well written, but lacked t...more

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Feb 26, 2013 Allison rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: netgalley, non

This book was described as being a memoir by a man who was looking for perspective in his life after his 25 year marriage ended in divorce, pushing him to sail solo. I expected it to be very emotional, but instead there was a major distance between the writer and all that happened to him. I didn't expect him to air his dirty laundry, but I did expect to feel like I was going along on the voyage with him. The language was fairly formal, ex: "The matters of my departure from Beaufort and my ultima...more

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Apr 16, 2012 Jess rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads

A very heartfelt, intimate, and personal story about the author's journey not only through the open ocean, but also through life. Hurley has written his memoir in such a way that the ocean and life are interwoven and interchangeable aspects of the book. He is able to describe the "ups and downs" that we go through on our journeys, and bring in a spiritual side to the book that makes it more encouraging, not overbearing. Not being a sailor myself, I did have to Google a couple of the terms in the...more

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May 13, 2013 Paige Bradish rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: review-books

I received Once Upon A Gypsy Moon by Michael Hurley, from the publisher for my honest review.

When I was contacted to review this book at first I was not just a little, but very hesitant about reading a memoir about a mans journey in life on the sea. But me being willing to give anything at least one shot, I agreed to review it and here I am writing a heartfelt review.

In the memoir we learn about the life of the author Michael Hurley. This was interesting because it was not just him whining abou...more

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May 07, 2012 Alisha rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads

I won this book from a goodreads giveaway contest.
This was a pretty decent memoir of a man going through a hard point in his life, and learning new lessons by trying to accomplish the goal of sailing around the world. Now, I have to admit, I know absolutely nothing about sailing, I have never even been on a sailboat. However, the way he explains it, certainly makes me more curious about learning. He makes the trip, the old boat, and the depressingly poor ports seem romantic and adventurous. Of...more

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Sep 10, 2012 Susan rated it 4 of 5 stars

I won an ARC of Once Upon a Gypsy Moon: A Memoir from a Goodreads giveaway & I am glad I did. I found this book to be very interesting & well-written. It is a story of a man who after his 25 years of marriage ends in divorce & he is out of a job, contemplates what to do with his life. Michael Hurley is a trial attorney & was a professional sailor. His love of the sea & his sailboat, the Gypsy Moon, is the heart of this book. But it is more than that...it is also about finding...more

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Apr 16, 2013 Casee Marie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2013, reviewed

Michael Hurley was still reeling from the end of his twenty-five year marriage after a life-changing infidelity when he found himself out of a job and with little wherewithal, left only to look back on his life and wonder how to move forward. A lifelong sailor, Hurley found his call for perspective answered by the sea, and he committed himself to undertaking an impressive journey from Maryland to Nassau on his 32-foot sailboat, the Gypsy Moon. With only the open water of the Atlantic for company...more Michael Hurley was still reeling from the end of his twenty-five year marriage after a life-changing infidelity when he found himself out of a job and with little wherewithal, left only to look back on his life and wonder how to move forward. A lifelong sailor, Hurley found his call for perspective answered by the sea, and he committed himself to undertaking an impressive journey from Maryland to Nassau on his 32-foot sailboat, the Gypsy Moon. With only the open water of the Atlantic for company, Hurley set off on his expedition in the hope of uncovering answers to his many questions through self-reflection amid the natural grace – and hardship – of life on the open seas. Initially, he wrote letters to his friends that chronicled his innermost thoughts and experiences during his trip, but eventually those letters transformed into Once Upon a Gypsy Moon, a memoir that details two years spent between the Gypsy Moon‘s determined journey and the life on land that churned along because of it. On his adventure Hurley would connect to himself, grow ever more deeply in-tuned with his faith, and meet the love of his life. He would discover, as well, that life is as unpredictable, and sometimes as unsettling, as the ocean’s tempestuous waters.

Once Upon a Gypsy Moon drew several different and impassioned reactions from me. At its height, the memoir captivated me in deep artistic appreciation; Hurley’s elegant, fluid prose was a source of pure delight all its own, and his depictions of life aboard the Gypsy Moon had me wishing for a dockside view, at the very least, all the better to immerse myself in the memoir’s tangible salty air. Amid the rocky terrain of the unpredictable ocean landscape – and with technical difficulties and masterful storms to blight his path – Hurley engages the reader with stories from his life, filled with both joy and sorrow. Through the entirety of his craftsmanship, Hurley has created a certain atmosphere that softly envelops his reader. When his narrative set foot on dry land, however, the scenes involving his social excursions felt slightly more distant. As it is in dreams, I felt that I couldn’t quite make out the faces of the people he wrote about; the finite details didn’t hook me there. Where they did, however, was in his documentation of his days spent tending to the Gypsy Moon. Even for one with as limited a nautical vocabulary as I, these scenes were clearly spun of a special sort of magic. Every memoir is, of course, an excursion into the deeper reaches of the author’s own insight, and Hurley delivers his view of the world – predominantly of love, marriage, and the intricacies of his personal faith – through extravagant prose the scope of which reveals that the author is not just a sailor, but also a dreamer and a poet.

Hurley’s insights share their space in the memoir with the Gypsy Moon herself, and she’s a bit of a scene stealer. Many would agree that few things are as commanding as the majesty of a boat on the water, and for a mortal man to offer something more enchanting is a true task. It would take an especially poignant story to entertain the reader as well as the simple, tremendous escapism of imagined life at sea; whether Hurley’s missive accomplishes this will depend greatly, perhaps entirely, on the character of the reader who entertains the pages of his memoir, but he certainly puts his heart and soul into the process. His honesty and courage are admirable, and his opulent, creative use of language delivers the memoir in a beautiful presentation. At times sparkling with charisma and exuding the crisp excitement of maritime adventure, Once Upon a Gypsy Moon offers readers a journey through the ocean of life that will appeal to the hearts of dreamers and romantics, be they on land or at sea.

(Review © Casee Marie, originally published on April 16, 2013 at LiteraryInklings.com. I received a copy of the book for the purpose of review.)(less)

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Jun 06, 2012 Kay rated it 2 of 5 stars

Sometimes, the acts of writing and reflecting overtakes the act of being, and reminding the reader of what it is like to live without the frills of overly complex storytelling. Unfortunately, this is where Once Upon a Gypsy Moon falls short. While there is a promising series of reflections upon what truly matters in life, and the journey to find that, pretention smothers it so that it takes a whole lot of digging to find.

I am not a boat person. Therefore, I’m sure much of the nuances relating t...more

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Apr 29, 2012 Susan Ashcraft rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: firstread, first, biographies, non-fiction

A ship's wake tells you where she has been, not where she's going.

Welcome aboard the Gypsy Moon, a 32 foot sloop, aging gracefully and with a lot of life left in her sails. Reeling from the end of his marriage and the loss of his job as a trial attorney, the author, Michael C. Hurley, sets off alone to sail from Annapolis, Maryland to Nassau. This journal of a solitary sea voyage is based on six letters that Michael sent out to friends while on his journey.

Michael's love affair with the water a...more

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May 06, 2013 Delia rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

First off I have to say this novel is well written. That being said it is a technically accurate account of one mans journey, via ship, to find himself and see the world. I was thinking this was going to be an emotional journey but it lacked the emotional pull of that kind of memoir. If you are looking for an interesting story and enjoy boating I think this would be an excellent novel for you.

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Sep 05, 2012 Jennifer rated it 3 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Apr 15, 2012 Erin Cataldi rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: goodreads-giveaway

I'm not going to lie I didn't make it past the 95th page. It wasn't a terrible read or anything it just wasn't my cup of tea. I can appreciate the journey Michael Hurley went through, having an affair, getting divorce, hitting bottom, and going on a sailing adventure. It is inspirational, make no mistake. There was just too much sailing jargon in and stops and starts in this book for me to get too into it. I haven't given up on it, not yet. I will try and come back to it when I'm in a more open...more

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May 12, 2013 Phillip is currently reading it · review of another edition

My soon to be neighbor wrote this book, I was pleasantly surprised to find a strong spiritual overtone in Michael's account. Refreshingly transparent and unpretentious. Even though I know little about sailing, he has an art for defining the mechanics of sailing that makes this landlubber yearn for the silence of sailing.

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Apr 28, 2013 Melissa rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Didn't really hold my interest. OK story about a man trying to find God and his redemption, but it was slow going for me and not as interesting as I thought it would be.

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Jul 13, 2012 Reading For Sanity rated it 3 of 5 stars

read this review and others at http://readingforsanity.blogspot.com/...

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May 31, 2012 Cheryl rated it 3 of 5 stars

I won this book on Goodreads. I was glad to find that it was much more than about sailing but also about his spiritual journey as well. I would have liked a bit more about the actual sailing though, than appeared in the book. Overall a good read.

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Apr 16, 2013 Jemilla rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads, i-own

I received this book for free as a First Reads giveaway.

Honestly, I'm not too sure what to say about this book. I did enjoy reading it, albeit in small relaxed portions. As someone who knows very little of boats, I often found myself feeling slightly lost and floating across paragraphs pretending I knew what the author was talking about, but the message of the book was clear and enlightening. I was going to put a quote which I thoroughly enjoyed, but I lost it, so I'll paraphrase... Even the mos...more

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Apr 29, 2012 Debbie marked it as to-read

I just received this and am looking forward to reading it! a review will be posted closer to it's release date!

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Oct 19, 2012 Shelley Jones rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: no-thanks

*I won this book as a firstreads edition*

I tried to read this last night, and as I am not a boat person found all the terminology way over my head. I am going to tackle it again later, but for now his writing style isn't exciting enough to keep me interested. Will try again later, as I do feel for his emotional journey....

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May 15, 2012 Staci C rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads

Loved the imagery and the way the author could make me feel his love and joy of sailing. Had a hard time keeping my interest up, but eventually got through it.

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May 12, 2013 Rolf rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

May 12, 2013 Osama Bayoumi rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

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About Michael C. Hurley

Mike Hurley is a husband, father, attorney and writer living in Raleigh, North Carolina. Born in Baltimore in 1958, he received his undergraduate degree in English Education in 1981 from the University of Maryland at College Park. After graduating from St. Louis University School of Law, he began a career in private practice in Houston in 1984. At age 34, he moved to North Carolina, where he took...more Mike Hurley is a husband, father, attorney and writer living in Raleigh, North Carolina. Born in Baltimore in 1958, he received his undergraduate degree in English Education in 1981 from the University of Maryland at College Park. After graduating from St. Louis University School of Law, he began a career in private practice in Houston in 1984. At age 34, he moved to North Carolina, where he took a year off to work as a professional sailboat-charter captain. Since entering private practice in North Carolina in 1993, he has earned success and notoriety as a defense lawyer in medical malpractice litigation. He is listed in North Carolina Super Lawyers.*
Mike began writing magazine articles about the outdoors at age 17. In 1995, he began writing and photographing a travelogue of wilderness canoe-expeditions with his children. This homespun journal grew into a commercially printed, quarterly gazette known as Hurley’s Journal (later Paddle & Portage) that was well-loved by more than 10,000 subscribers in 48 states. A collection of Mike’s essays from eight years of the journal became his first book, Letters from the Woods. The Wilmington Star-News described it as “one of those books you pick up like a comfy old shirt to relax in. . . Whimsical . . . Elegiac . . .” and wrote that “Hurley, like Hemingway, glories in the job cleanly done.” Writer’s Digest called it “inspiring on a variety of levels.” The Raleigh News & Observer found it “pointed, personal and poignant,” “a deep and passionate tale of wilderness adventures,” “a celebration of universal truths,” and “well worth reading.”

In 2006, Mike’s life was turned upside down by the end of his first marriage. Three years later, in seeking to understand these events and find a way forward, he took to the open ocean in a 32-foot sailboat, the Gypsy Moon, on a voyage that spanned two years. In his latest book, Letters from the Sea, Mike tells the unlikely, true story of how this remarkable voyage changed his life, and he offers hope to others who have had to pick up the pieces after personal failure and loss.
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