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An Embarrassment of Mangoes : A Caribbean Interlude
Under the Tuscan Sun meets the wide-open sea . . . An Embarrassment of Mangoes is a delicious chronicle of leaving the type-A lifestyle behind -- and discovering the seductive secrets of life in the Caribbean.
Who hasn’t fantasized about chucking the job, saying goodbye to the rat race, and escaping to some exotic destination in search of sun, sand, and a different way of l...more
Who hasn’t fantasized about chucking the job, saying goodbye to the rat race, and escaping to some exotic destination in search of sun, sand, and a different way of l...more
Hardcover, 320 pages
Published
December 10th 2003
by Doubleday Canada
(first published 2003)
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As the book blurb states, "An Embarassment of Mangoes" is remniscent of "Under the Tuscan Sun" in that it is a travel memoir about a women who steps away from her "real life" of working her job and the dealing with other everyday stresses. The author and her husband take 2 years off from their work and set sail from Toronto to the Caribbean.
The book really made me want to do the same...especially now when I am bogged down with deadlines and too much work at the office. I NEED A VACATION!!!
The a...more
The book really made me want to do the same...especially now when I am bogged down with deadlines and too much work at the office. I NEED A VACATION!!!
The a...more
May 17, 2007
Julie McElhaney
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Anyone that needs to get away!
Shelves:
travel
If this book doesn't make you want to learn to sail, nothing will! A fun trip through the Caribbean and some tasty recipes to boot!
Aug 15, 2011
Katie Kenig
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
non-fiction,
memoir
My good friend Jill recommended this book to me a while ago, and I had great plans for it. Since it was a Caribbean travel memoir, it had to be read in the summertime (so I wasn't too consumed with jealousy over the wonderful time the author was having) and preferably, it would be read on vacation.
This July finally fit the bill, and I toted An Embarrassment of Mangoes along with me on our northern camping vacation. While I was in the deep woods and the author and her husband were sailing on deep...more
This July finally fit the bill, and I toted An Embarrassment of Mangoes along with me on our northern camping vacation. While I was in the deep woods and the author and her husband were sailing on deep...more
"An Embarrassment of Mangoes: A Caribbean Interlude" is the first in a duet of memoirs by Ann Vanderhoof (the second is titled "The Spice Necklace"). This is the story of 2 late 30s-early 40s Canadians who quit their jobs and spend 2 years sailing first down the coast of North America to the Bahamas and then on through the Caribbean. Ann and her significant other, Steve, are no more than novice sailors. Steve, more experienced, but barely, the sum total of his experience having been on Lake Onta...more
This book came as recommended reading prior to my sailing vacation in the British Virgin Islands. Our one week sailing around Tortola andhitting Virgin Gorda, the Bitter End Yacht Club, the Baths, and of course Foxy's was amazing. So much beautiful scenery, being on the water and then under the water. The snorkeling was almost like scuba, but wait!, I'm supposed to be reviewing the book, not the vacation....
I thought it was absolutely wonderful that this young Canadian couple planned for their t...more
I thought it was absolutely wonderful that this young Canadian couple planned for their t...more
This book is a must read for all travellers, travel enthusiasts or people who just like to day dream about getting away. The book is about a couple's year long adventure sailing the Carribean in their Sailboat. They encounter culture, crazy weather and awesome food. I loved that the mix of memoir, travelogue, cookbook, sailing guide all rolled into one. This book will make you want to quit your day job and leave for an adventure.
Having just read a travel book with a difference ('A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson') with my Goodreads bookclub, I was inspired to do some more couch travelling,and the cover and title of this book grabbed me. The idea of giving up an executive job and following your dream to travel for 2 years has a familiar tone to it (also the period known as 'the five year plan' to make it happen!). At one point after trying to leave George Town in the Bahamas (also known as 'chicken harbour' for obvious...more
Who hasn't dreamed of quitting their day-job, buying a boat, and cruising the Caribbean for a couple of years? Author Ann Vanderhoof did it with her husband in the late 1990s, and this book is the result.
The book reads a bit like a travelogue at times, and the action seems mostly centered on one or two islands. It seems more like the chronicles of a mid-life crisis (see: Under the Tuscan Sun) than a blow-by-blow of a Caribbean life interlude, but I found it passably entertaining as a reading int...more
The book reads a bit like a travelogue at times, and the action seems mostly centered on one or two islands. It seems more like the chronicles of a mid-life crisis (see: Under the Tuscan Sun) than a blow-by-blow of a Caribbean life interlude, but I found it passably entertaining as a reading int...more
I read this after coming back from a vacation in St. John in the USVI. In a way I'm glad I read it after we came back because I would have been very jealous indeed about the embarrassment of mangoes, fish, and local friends the author and her husband find on their adventures sailing south from Canada to the Caribbean. As far as St. John goes, we found little in the way of local produce except a few limes still on the trees. This book is a light and sometimes scary memoir about putting your caree...more
I live in Michigan and this is the perfect book to read in February when you have forgotten exactly what the sun looks like anymore. Ann is frank, humerous and wonderfully engaging. Warning: Do NOT read this book when hungry! Her descriptions of the meals she concocted on the sailboat and accompanying recipes will make the reader salivate. I recommend this book to anyone I know who loves sailing, travel, adventure, food, or the notion of challenging yourself and leaving your old life behind. It...more
I love to travel and been to many Caribbean Islands, that is why I picked up this book....and I am glad I did. Ann takes us on her and her husband, Steve's adventure of sailing from Canada to the Caribbean. The writing was so well done you felt like you were sailing with them through all the good of sailing and the rough waters too. I think what I liked most about this book is the meeting of the locals and other sailers, they meet and make many friends. They learned of Island life, the culinary,...more
Two years on a small boat, together 24/7 when one of you starts as a not-very-comfortable sailor... a situation in which I imagine you would learn about about yourself and your partner.
Sadly, for me, Vanderhoof stays away from disclosing anything about herself, her husband and how the voyage changed them and their relationship, maybe even their relationship with others. She sticks to pleasant enough descriptions of the places and people, and there are some nice recipes, but the book lacked soul...more
Sadly, for me, Vanderhoof stays away from disclosing anything about herself, her husband and how the voyage changed them and their relationship, maybe even their relationship with others. She sticks to pleasant enough descriptions of the places and people, and there are some nice recipes, but the book lacked soul...more
I bought this book for my dad when it was first released because it combined two of his loves: sailing and cooking. I read part of it before I gave Dad the book and I loved it. I bought a copy for myself and read it in two or three sittings. The prose is delightful, the intermingled recipes are inspiring and delicious, and the story simply lifts you out of wherever you are and transports you to the Caribbean. Hear the wind in the palms, the steel pan music drifting in the air, smell the delights...more
Feb 26, 2009
Patty
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2009,
adventure,
biography,
autobiography,
cooking,
food,
local-food,
memoir,
non-fiction,
travel,
women-writers,
caribbean
Ann and Steve work hard at their jobs in Canada. They like what they do and fortunately for them they get to work together as well as be married to one another. They have carved out a good life for themselves. However, they have come up with a plan that will change all that - they are going to escape wintery Toronto with a sailboat adventure.
This is the story of a dream. And it is a book for anyone who worries about whether they should attempt their dream. Without giving away the tale that Ann...more
This is the story of a dream. And it is a book for anyone who worries about whether they should attempt their dream. Without giving away the tale that Ann...more
If you ever thought about sailing down to the Caribbean, this is the book for you. Travel account of a woman and her husband who sail from Toronto all the way down to Trinidad in the Southern Caribbean. She writes about every day life on a 45 ft boat, her fears and overcoming challenges, storms and hurricanes, cooking in a small galley, beautiful scenery, incredible people, local food, rum tasing, fishing, boat maintainence, and anything else that goes on during two years living in tight quarter...more
I loved "sailing" the Caribbean vicariously...but travel memoirs ARE my favorite genre! The author and her husband gave up a "traditional" way of life in Toronto to live aboard their sailboat for 2 years. Sounds dreamy, but it wasn't all mangoes and bliss. Sailing sounds WAY harder than I ever imagined! Things that I really appreciated about this book: One, the author forged friendships with island people and that gave the book a fresh perspective. Two, the author includes loads of Caribbean rec...more
An enjoyable and easy read that chronicles the adventures of a middle-aged married couple who give up their jobs for 2 years to sail from Toronto to the Caribbean and back again. What I loved about this book is that it's not a mid-life crisis escape, but rather the story of two people who decided to take a risk while they had the chance. The author and her husband don't rashly head off to the Caribbean - they spend 7 years planning and preparing for their adventure. As they set off, the author s...more
A light and fun read that will make you want to do two things as quickly as possible:
1) Escape to a Caribbean island
2) Eat something containing either fish, tropical fruit, or coconut milk
I love travel books and this was no exception. In reality I probably don't have the guts to do something like quit my job and sail from island to island...but this kind of book makes me WANT to be that person. I could practically taste all the food she made (while being impressed at what she managed to pull off...more
1) Escape to a Caribbean island
2) Eat something containing either fish, tropical fruit, or coconut milk
I love travel books and this was no exception. In reality I probably don't have the guts to do something like quit my job and sail from island to island...but this kind of book makes me WANT to be that person. I could practically taste all the food she made (while being impressed at what she managed to pull off...more
My friend Joan sent me this book when we told her about our upcoming cruising adventure. She had read it and said it reminded her of us. It tells about a couple with no offshore experience as they head south from Canada on the Intercoastal Waterway and then off to the Caribbean for two years. The author intersperses tales of their travels and the people they meet along the way with recipes for sundowners and local fare. A nice, light read. Maybe one day I'll write my own book of our adventures a...more
A very readable sailing from Canada to the Caribbean travel journey of a Toronto couple who rented their house and took a yacht to the Caribbean over a period of two years. Humour and danger in equal parts and lovely local flavours and some characters met along the way, but I could have done without the recipes at the end of every chapter - they felt to me like superfluous padding and a publisherʻs gimmick. I just found myself skipping those pages at the end of every chapter which reduced the bo...more
Originally posted at Fancy Terrible:
I started reading this on a crisp, bright, fall morning, where the temperature outside barely reached the mid-50s (that’s just out of the single digits for you Celsius folks). It didn’t take much to get me into the smooth, clear waters of the Caribbean, the juicy, brightly colored fruits at the market, the spicy, warm fire of the rum.
Many travel narratives are born from this urge for the traveler to try and find her/himself . . . to pick up after some kind of...more
I started reading this on a crisp, bright, fall morning, where the temperature outside barely reached the mid-50s (that’s just out of the single digits for you Celsius folks). It didn’t take much to get me into the smooth, clear waters of the Caribbean, the juicy, brightly colored fruits at the market, the spicy, warm fire of the rum.
Many travel narratives are born from this urge for the traveler to try and find her/himself . . . to pick up after some kind of...more
Ok, so I am deeply regretting that I merely borrowed this book instead of buying it. So much so that its getting bought fairly quickly. It was a pretty good book and I was sorry when it ended.
A nonfiction, it covers the two years that author Ann and her husband Steve go cruising in the Caribbean. They travel many places, weather many storms, and meet a lot of other cruisers and islanders. Some of the places they visit are the Dominican Republic, several towns along the Atlantic coast of the USA,...more
A nonfiction, it covers the two years that author Ann and her husband Steve go cruising in the Caribbean. They travel many places, weather many storms, and meet a lot of other cruisers and islanders. Some of the places they visit are the Dominican Republic, several towns along the Atlantic coast of the USA,...more
If there was ever a book that confirmed my desire to just get on a boat and go sailing for the rest of my life, this was it. Ann Vanderhoof and her husband, Steve, left their jobs in Canada for a two year tour of the Caribbean. Along the way, they faced their fears (night sailing, mechanical breakdowns, hurricanes) and had an experience they'll never forget. Heck, I won't soon forget it, and I just read the book!
The author and her husband also do things that other cruisers might not: they talk t...more
The author and her husband also do things that other cruisers might not: they talk t...more
I absolutely loved this book! Similar to a lot of people, I fantasize about quitting my job and running away to a desert island and setting up camp - getting away from it all. Sailing to and around the Caribbean doesn't sound bad either although I don't think I would ever get sea legs and since I'm allergic to seafood, I would probably starve. However, I loved how Ann and her husband befriended those of the countries they visited, the other cruisers and just lived life to the fullest. A great re...more
I really enjoyed this book. It is about a couple in their 30's that decides to quit their successful day jobs and sail to warmer waters of the caribbean for at least a year. I have not sailed since 2002 and it took me right back and made me realize how much I miss it. Extremely light and easy read. Well written. Loved the recipes included. For me, lifted me out of my New England winter doldrums...great beach read...or a just want to escape read. Cannot wait to dive into The Spice Necklace.
This was a delicious book, in ever sense of the word. Even though the thought of eating conch and assorted other ocean creepy crawlies was not appealing, the food described so lovingly throughout the book was mouthwatering. some of the recipes even seem able to be replicated here on mainlain. Ann and Steve were clearly depicted, and thoroughly likable, throughout the book. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to relate to a pair wealthy enough to own a boat and worry about fine wine and liquor, but a...more
Mar 04, 2009
Sandra
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Sandra by:
Austin Davis
Shelves:
would-like-to-own
What an escape! I thoroughly enjoyed this couples true story of taking a risk and going for their dreams! They did it and I lived vicariously through them. I also enjoyed the fact that she included all these wonderful recipes throughout the book that she learned along the way. I hope to try a few. Especially the rum drinks! :) I really do need a copy for my own book collection as I must (reluctantly) return this one to it's rightful owner.
If you've ever dreamed or schemed about sailing away this is definitely the book to push you in the direction of making it happen. A Canadian couple puts together a 5 year plan for ditching their jobs and taking a 2 year sale. They make it happen and the book gives the high-lights, admittedly, mostly positive with a few traumas thrown it to give some suspense. They go as far as the Caribbean. It's fun, it's an escape and a fun dream.
Very enjoyable book! This one is more about the sailing into the Carribean for two years, but very enjoyable and the recipes sound good, too. In fact I made the mango crisp last night and it was good. But I think I may need to learn more about how to tell if the mangoes are ripe. I really liked the mini history lessons on the different islands and how they were able to make friends wherever they went, among the cruisers and the people who live in the islands.
Must be nice to drop out of work for 2 years... Maybe I am a little jealous or bitter or perhaps both, but there is no way that things went so swimmingly all the time. 24/7 in a small cabin, wife was formerly the husband's boss at work, and inexperience on the open sea = arguments. Vanderhoof seems to have forgotten the bad stuff in this travel memoir. Recipes look tasty and the book is a light, pleasant read. Makes me want to go into my spice pantry and deeply inhale the nutmeg...
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Mar 21, 2011 08:16pm