Islands, Oceans and Dreams

By: Michael Salvaneschi

Narrated by: Andrew Parker

Islands, Oceans and Dreams is a true story of a man who, at the age of 33, began dreaming of voyaging with his wife to the South Pacific. He wasn't an adventurer or daring by nature, but he bought a boat and began learning the ways of the sea. Twenty years later, racked with the pain of divorce and still aching to live out his dream, he set off alone for Tahiti. After reaching French Polynesia, he continued cruising for seven years and wound up solo sailing around the world. Islands, Oceans and Dreams takes the listener on that voyage.

From turquoise lagoons to pirates and plenty of adventure in between, this is a must-listen for any sailor or armchair traveler who loves stories of the sea.

Michael Salvaneschi has more than 30 years of experience sailing California’s offshore Islands. His two voyages to Mexico, his two-year stint as a commercial swordfisherman, and his seven-year solo voyage around the world has taught him much about seamanship. As a guest speaker at yachts clubs, sailing societies, and service groups, Michael tells his stories, sharing his experiences as a solo sailor.

©2005, 2013 Lori S. Volk (P)2022 Lori S. Volk

View from the cockpit

The excellent writing, honesty, and his ability to create in the mind of the reader a sense of being present on the voyage

Great story, sound editing loses a star.

The story is similar to a more modern (90s and 00s instead of 70s and 80s) tale from Larry and Lin Pardey, if not including their lovely charm as a couple, it contains a captivating tale of a man, a dream, and his solo-sail trip around the world. The story itself is great; the only thing that is disappointing is the sound editing. There are approximately 10 or so instances throughout the book where the editors did not cut the lines where the narrator started a sentence, stopped, and restarted his line to better create the feeling, and towards the end of the book the "sh", "ss", and "ch" sounds come across as sharp and peaky, causing the listener to wince and reach for the volume control, even if they haven't had to do so the rest of the book, which shows a lack of equalization throughout the whole narration. The narrator successfully enables the listener to escape into the tale despite these faults, however, and I still recommend it to the seaward dreamer.

Thank You!

wonderful book, I could not stop listening. It helped to liston to the dream that many of us have but for various reasons will never be able to fulfill. At least he did!

An interesting sea story

I really enjoyed the book, though it was distressing to hear about the author's fellow single handed circumnavigators. I thought the author did a great job of not only doing the trip, but also describing it in a book. Both require a lot of talent and determination.

Inspirational story of trials, hardship, reward, and fulfillment.

Michael recounts a harrowing tale of seafaring among remote islands of unspeakable beauty, treacherous storms, exotic wildlife, run-ins with pirates, and countries that most can only dream of visiting. All of these thematic elements, storytelling nature of the author, and outstanding performance of the reader, encapsulate a man’s experience of a lifetime, and inspiration for others to dream.