Green Ghost, Blue Ocean

by Jennifer Smith

Green Ghost, Blue Ocean is a travel memoir about a 40,000 nautical mile adventure that spans seventeen years. Early in their careers, Jennifer and her husband Nik come to realize that the rewards in the corporate world will always be the same--more money to buy more things, but never time off for self-discovery. When they begin to imagine a life outside the norm, they seize on the idea of long-distance sailing as the perfect way to journey down a road less travelled.

Green Ghost, Blue Ocean is a story about taking time and taking a risk, about unwittingly losing your identity while simultaneously redefining yourself in ways never imagined. It is a story about the importance of starting and the acceptance of an imperfect plan. It is a tale of the triumph of conviction: if you believe that you?ll figure it out when you get there, it's amazing how far you can go.

286 pages, Paperback

Published April 30, 2020

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Lorraine Helson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this from start to finish!!! Makes me want to do some distance sailing but I'm not sure I would have the courage to go across the ocean!!! What amazing adventures!!! Thank you Jane for sending this gem to us!!! I have a few people in mind with whom I would love to share this!

[Jessica W · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a marvelous adventure and travel story - inspiring, eye-opening, and truthful. This memoir took me around the world to some of the most remote and hidden gems that few have seen. From Vanuatu to Flores to Borneo and many other places, I was struck by how much beauty there is in the world, and left with the burning desire to visit these places myself one day. While I am not a sailor, I thoroughly enjoyed traversing the world's greatest oceans (Pacific, Indian, and Atlantic) through the eyes of the author. The descriptions are so vivid I could picture the marine life (whales, dolphins, and blackfish) swimming along the boat, and feel the fullness of being at mercy with forty-five knot winds in the middle of the ocean at night. Some of us dream a dream and others live it. It was nice to be reminded that there are people who are brave enough to walk away from everything to chart a course on their own. A great travel read!

[Lindsay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this read, a great mix of adventure and travel. I couldn't put it down, wanting to know where Jenn and Nik would go next and what mark the country would leave on them. My sailor husband loved the detail about the boat and all it's parts, and I reveled in the well written descriptions of the sea, the clouds and the flora and fauna. I recommend!

[Susan Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve just finished reading this book and I enjoyed every bit of it. Jennifer Smith gives an account of her life changing journey in a style that’s accessible, eloquent, humorous and most of all, honest. It’s something I will never be able to do but now feel like a small part of me has lived her journey with her, and no prior experience of sailing is necessary! I particularly love the authors honesty, it would have been so easy to airbrush the journey to accentuate the highlights but the grit and grind and sea sickness and fear and conflict are what make it real, authentic and gripping. I feel like I get Jennifer; I feel the emotions and anxieties of the highs and the lows I get her exhilaration of genuine cultural encounters such as at the Toka Festival in Tanna, the amazing animal experiences in their natural habitat, the calmness in night shift as she is gazing at the stars and how it sort of puts you in your place in the universe. It made me reflect anew on my own travel experiences. I also recoil at the endless hard work involved in ‘living the dream’. Jennifer describes it so honestly and it really hits home that you only get out of life what you put in. It got me
looking at a map in a way i’ve never done before; I’ve googled so many of the places she writes about because I wanted to know more. What a thing to have done! It makes all my travels feel quite tame. As the world changes dramatically this book may end up becoming an historical document!

[Jean Richardson · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely wonderful travel memoir, detailing how Jennifer Smith and her husband consciously chose to escape the corporate rat race and sail around the world. Jennifer shares not only a glimpse into what life on a sailboat is like, but an entertaining insight into places and people few of us will ever see! With great insight into human nature and life choices, this provides an inspiring read for anyone interested in living a different life - vicariously or for themselves!

[Brenda · Rating 5 out of 5]

In her compelling memoir, Jennifer Smith invites readers aboard Green Ghost with her and Nik to share some of their joyful, terrifying and mundane experiences over two decades of blue water cruising. As someone who has had the privilege of spending time with the couple on Green Ghost, I appreciated Jennifer’s candid account of what inspired them to set sail, and what motivated them to keep on going. From the cold waters of British Columbia to tropical Fiji, and eventually to the clear blue British Virgin Islands on the other side of the world, Jennifer transports us on an awe-inspiring journey of life, love, and love of life.

Green Ghost, Blue Ocean is a unique, wonderful read.

[Paul Siegel]

Just finished reading Green Ghost, Blue Ocean... and with Covid keeping me at home and freezing weather outside, this book is a perfect read to fill ones mind with exotic locations, salty excursions and oh so many adventures. If you need a break from today’s reality, or you have even the tiniest adventurous spirit, this is a must read book for you. I now consider myself a bona fide expert on sailing the globe (okay.. maybe expert is too strong a word) and truly appreciated author Jenn’s (not Jenny) vibrant and descriptive writing style. Try this book out.. you won’t be disappointed!

[Henry · Rating 5 out of 5]

While reading this book, two thoughts kept alternating in my mind - “I would never do this” and “I would love to do this”. Jennifer does a great job of describing the terrors and the joys of sailing around the world. She does this without a lot of travelogue fluff while still taking the time to describe the beauty and fascination of faraway places.

I’m usually a slow reader and I read this book in one sitting.

[Leslee U · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a great read. Jennifer has a warm and engaging writing style. I’m not a sailor and couldn’t see myself doing what they did yet loved the adventures of their travel and the stories of the villages where they stopped. Highly recommend this for a book club too.

[Stacey]

We meet Nik and jenn in Australia or Fiji back in 03 or 04. Great folks and I really injoyed the book. Brings back good times and good people. Congrats on the book
Stacey and Michelle
SV Orion
PS: yep still in the south pacific and still sailing!

[Es · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book! Takes you on a wonderful journey. Well written, makes you feel like you are actually there with the author. Also has the perfect size chapters.

[Philippe Ayoub · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great adventure that will either make you yearn for a life at sea or confirm that you are more of a landlubber.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I keep thinking of Jennifer, Nick & the Green Ghost and their amazing adventures. Upping my rating.

[Barb Reimer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read many stories of world sailing journeys. Jennifer M. Smith’s is one of the best. She tells it like it is, with all the bumps and bruises. You won’t come away disillusioned about sailing trips. They truly are sheer bliss, interrupted by periods of sheer panic. And that’s what I like best about this book. There are plenty of great descriptions of the places, the bays, the beauty of both the people and nature they find in their travels. The sailing technology and techniques are discussed but not so much that you get lost in its detail. I came away appreciating the time she took to capture real events and reflections of their life on this journey. Highly recommend this for sailing enthusiasts who like to sail around the world in an chair.

[Joyce · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an adventure, loved hearing of all their ports of call and people they met. Don’t think I could ever sail, much preferred our adventures in our Land Yacht. I could relate to their selling everything to set off on the adventure of a lifetime. We did it but moved into Our Wandering Casa to log 80,000km crisscrossing the North American continent.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Good armchair travel book. I could never live on a sailboat but I sure like reading other's peoples adventures on them. Although I did wonder when Nik gets seasick continually, why he is so keen on sailing? I have only been on a sailboat once, and I felt so nauseous that I have never wanted to step foot on another one.

[Judy Budd wood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read!

[Sharon Holmes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book. Jennifer and Nik take us on their incredible journey in this fanastic read.

[Zoe Wisenberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing read! Well written & super interesting

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read for bookclub. A beautiful travelogue with excellent narrative. The writer beautifully described the journey as well as the unusual places they visited in their multi year voyage.