Linda Greenlaw hadn’t been blue-water fishing for ten years, since the great events chronicled in The Perfect Storm and The Hungry Ocean, when an old friend offered her the captaincy on his boat, Seahawk, for a season of swordfishing. She took the bait, of course, and thus opened a new chapter in a life that had already seen enough adventure for three lifetimes. The Seahawk turns out to be the rustiest of buckets, with sprung, busted, and ancient equipment guaranteed to fail at any critical moment. Life is never dull out on the Grand Banks, and no one is better at capturing the flavor and details of the wild ride that is swordfishing, from the technical complexities of longline fishing and the nuances of reading the weather and waves to the sheer beauty of the open water. The trip is full of surprises, “a bit hardier and saltier than I had hoped for,” but none more unexpected than when the boat’s lines inadvertently drift across the Canadian border and she lands in jail. Seaworthy is about nature — human and other; about learning what you can control and what you do when fate takes matters out of your control. It’s about how a middle-aged woman who sets a high bar for herself copes with challenge and change and frustration, about the struggle to succeed or fail on your own terms, and above all, about learning how to find your true self when you’re caught between land and sea.
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"I will be reading all of Greenlaw's books... This book, though slightly repetitive at points, perfectly displays the author's love of the sea while she relays a million horrible events that should, in reality, cause disdain, this book held my attention from the moment I opened it."
— Katrina (4 out of 5 stars)
" This is the third or fourth book by Linda Greenlaw that I've read. While I'd have to say it's not the strongest of her stories, she has such a gift for story telling, even a subject revolving around commercial fishing becomes a page-turner in her hands. Linda's style is conversational and clean - as ship-shape and straightforward to read as I imagine the boats must be that she so capably commands. In "Seaworthy," she returns after a ten-year absence to her first love, fishing for swordfish off the waters of Newfoundland. The ins and outs of finding competent and compatible crew, dealing with a temperamental old boat, and coping with a deck swamped with thrashing sharks, all pale in significance compared to a run-in with Canadian Fisheries officials. In my opinion, you can't go wrong reading any of Linda's books. "
— Kate, 2/4/2014" Wonderful - 10 years after The Perfect Storm and writing some great books she returns to the sea. "
— Amy, 1/28/2014" Benefitted from her desciption of her management techniques, and her aproach to the job. "
— Steve, 1/28/2014" Too much introspection, not enough returning to the sea. "
— doug, 1/18/2014" She is pretty cool and for an 'older person' (she was in her late 40's when she returned to the sea as a sword boat captain) does great. "
— Dayle, 1/17/2014" Quite enjoyable, nearly as good as Hungry Ocean "
— Ed, 1/13/2014" Anything by Linda Greenlaw about her fishing years is worth a read. "
— Ted, 11/28/2013" Not bad. A quick read. "
— Mike, 9/30/2013" The weakest of all her books...she could have put it all on 10 pages. She must have been trying to make some money to pay her court costs. "
— Sandy, 9/2/2013" This book seemed like the author was trying too hard to defend herself and her choices. Especially at the end. "
— Andrea, 2/7/2013" What a fascinating career choice for anyone, especially a woman, but I found myself bored reading it and basically skimming several pages. However, I still may try some of her other books. "
— Beth, 1/29/2013Linda Greenlaw is America’s only female swordfish-boat captain and was featured in the book and the film The Perfect Storm and in the Discovery Channel series Swords: Life on the Line. She is the author of three New York Times bestsellers, including The Lobster Chronicles, as well as two mysteries and two cookbooks coauthored with her mother, Martha Greenlaw. She lives on Isle au Haut, Maine.