"Sailing to Jessica" by Kelly Watts (2012)

Discussion Questions:

1.   At the start of their maiden voyage and very aware of her lack of sailing experience, Kelly defers to Paul and Bruce's sailing decisions; by the end of the trip, Kelly feels confident enough to sail around the world.  How would the story have changed if Kelly hadn't gotten this boost of self-confidence?   

2.  In Chapter Two, Kelly describe her and her husband's struggle with infertility as a life crisis which made them question the meaning of their lives.   Do you think that selling their house and jumping on a boat - when Kelly and Paul didn't have any sailing experience - was a justified or extreme response to their situation?  Why? Have you, or a loved one, experienced a life crisis?  What was it and how did you (or they) handle it?

3.  In "Sailing to Jessica, " Kelly and Paul set off to sail around the world, relying on how-to books until they gained experience to draw upon.  For example, Kelly uses knowledge she gained from a book to convince Bruce to keep watch from the cabin during their maiden voyage; she uses a book to help her plan her one-year provisioning/grocery shopping trip; she studies pictures to learn eyeball navigation in the Bahamas. Do you think books can teach us any - or all - subjects?    Are they a reasonable substitute for experience? 

4.  Kelly and Paul disagree about bringing a gun at the start of their trip but when Kelly spots a suspicious-looking boat off the coast of Ecuador, she tells Paul to grab the gun.  Why did she change her mind?  Would you bring a gun on this trip?  Why or why not?

5. At three different points along their route, Kelly and Paul are given the option to sail "the road less travelled,"  and they choose to take those routes which led them to Katiu, Suwarrow and Tuvalu/Kiribati.  In Tuvalu and for the majority of their stay in Kiribati, they are the only sailboat in the anchorage; in the other locations, there are just one or two boats.    Why do some people chose a different path?  Is it due to a sense of exploration or a desire to be different?  If you were sailing their route, would you choose to visit these remote locations or would you stay with the majority of sailors?  Why?

6. What was your favorite place along Kelly and Paul's route?  Why?

7. Kelly wrote: "The tsunami confirmed my unspoken belief that Paul and I were supposed to be in Kiribati; that this was part of our destiny."  Do you agree with Kelly's assessment?  Have you ever had a similar experience, where you just knew you were destined to be there? Do we even have a destiny? Or do we make our own destiny?  

8.  What do you think about the concept that adoption is like marriage because it unites two families?   Kelly and Paul had an unusual adoption process in that an adoption agency was not involved, they had custody of the baby immediately and they faced serious paperwork obstacles.  Have you, or anyone you know, adopted a child?  What was their adoption process like?  How does it compare with Kelly and Paul's? 

9. Do you think Kelly and Paul made the right decision after the gale in Tarawa?  Why?  What would you have done in their position?

10.  What are the similarities between Cherokee Rose's first  and final passages?  Are there any differences?   

11.  When the book becomes a major motion picture (one can always hope!), which actor should play Paul?  Please email Kelly your answer so she can keep a tally for the movie producers...

Sailing to Jessica Video Links:

Book Club video, book trailer and two fun videos on Tuvalu and Katiu are all found at https://www.youtube.com/user/SailingToJessica?feature=guide  or on the Sailing to Jessica website at:

Book Trailer   http://www.sailingtojessica.com/index.html
Book Club video    http://www.sailingtojessica.com/book-clubs.html
Katiu     http://www.sailingtojessica.com/chapter-14-buddy-boating-to-black-pearls.html
Tuvalu   http://www.sailingtojessica.com/chapter-21-celebrations-in-tuvalu.html

Answers to Multi-media Quiz on Kelly's Book Club Video:

1.  Spinnaker (or the ball gown, as Kelly called it)
2.  While sailing to the Yasawas, in Fiji (same day that Kelly took the photo for the cover of her book and for Blue Water sailing magazine)
3.  Hiva Oa, the Marquesas
4.  Red-tailed tropic birds
5.  Independence Day
6.  the anchor
7.  grafting oysters (to make black pearls)
8.  Majuro, the Marshall Islands
9.  the engine!
10.  Your choice…George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Hugh Jackman…

Recipes for the Host/Hostess:

Sundowners Cocktail:  
Mix equal parts of orange juice, guava nectar, pineapple juice and rum; sprinkle with nutmeg and enjoy!  (Btw, Alida from s/v Acclaim - friends from the Bahamas - has a similar recipe but she uses grapefruit juice instead of the guava and adds a splash of lime juice and/or grenadine syrup to taste...).  This recipe is also good without the rum. 

Curried Coconut Chips:
I made these often on board as coconuts were plentiful; I used "Gourmet" magazine's recipe and modified the salt to taste.  Paul cracked our coconuts with a machete :) but if you don't have a machete-welding Paul around, you might ask your grocery store produce manager to crack the coconut for you - and skip the first part of this recipe.  

Here's the recipe from  http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Curried-Coconut-Chips-10166#ixzz2TPdvZYar

		1 coconut without any cracks and containing liquid
		2 teaspoons curry powder
		1 1/2 teaspoons salt
		1 teaspoon sugar
		1/4 teaspoon cayenne
		1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
		
Preheat oven to 400°F.
Pierce the softest eye of coconut with an ice pick or skewer and drain liquid. Bake coconut in oven 15 minutes and on a work surface break open with a hammer. With point of a small knife carefully pry flesh out of shell and cut into large pieces. With a vegetable peeler shave coconut along cut edges into thin strips.
Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.
In a bowl stir together remaining ingredients and add coconut strips. Toss mixture well and spread in one layer in 2 large shallow baking pans. Bake chips in upper and lower third of oven, switching position of pans halfway through baking and stirring occasionally, until crisp and beginning to turn golden, 15 to 20 minutes. Chips keep in an airtight container at room temperature 4 days.