Twenty years ago, when I first moved to St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands, I witnessed a bunch of locals engage in a rum-fueled debate about whether Coral Bay–the sleepy, far side of the island where I was living–was …
A Final Farewell for a Special Sailboat Looking at all the boats tossed on shore by Hurricane Helene’s record storm surge in Florida prompted me to pull up these photos of O’dege—a sailboat at the heart of my sailing experiences …
Congrats to Prince Harry! His memoir, Spare, which came out a year ago–same as mine–sold, according to his publisher, 3.2 million copies in the first week. By contrast, NOT ON ANY MAP: One Virgin Island, Two Catastrophic Hurricanes, and the …
A Tale of Two Memoirs (or, What Exactly is the F*#k You 5,000?) Read more »
“Every so often, someone with a sharp eye and a way with words lands in a unique locale, pays attention and then nails it in print. Such is the case with Margie Smith Holt who fled to Coral Bay in …
NOT ON ANY MAP: One Virgin Island, Two Catastrophic Hurricanes, and the True Meaning of Paradise is an adventure story, a love letter to the island of St. John, and a warning about climate change. What is paradise? That’s the …
Inspiring Memoir by Margie Smith Holt Debuts at #1 on Amazon Bestseller List Read more »
There was a time in my professional life when I would have thought a book party with no books was a tragedy. I mean, seriously. A book party with no books? One of the things I learned from living on …
How to (Successfully) Launch Your New Book Without Books Read more »
Three years ago this weekend I watched a weary band of sailors in Coral Bay, St. John, pull off an extraordinary feat. They held their annual Thanksgiving regatta, just weeks after being decimated by Hurricanes Irma and Maria, two back-to-back …
Everybody here on St. John is talking about the weather. There’s something out there. It’s not Florence, or Gordon. It doesn’t even have a name yet, isn’t technically a storm, but it’s out there, coming off the coast of Africa, …
Hurricane season begins today and I’m thinking about two of my favorite old salts, one British, one American. We had lunch a few weeks ago in the British Virgin Islands at a place called Peg Legs at Nanny Cay in …
Sunday morning and we’re walking along the Leinster Bay Trail. It’s different. There are rocks and coral where there used to be dirt. A beached boat blocks the path, a cartoon snorkeler painted on the side looking surprised to be …