Twenty Small Sailboats to Take You Anywhere Paperback – December 1, 1999

Not all these boats are inexpensive and none are cheap, but John Vigor gets a gold star for walking the potential skipper through many choices available for those who dream of doing more than daysailing, but who have not managed to command a Fortune 500 retirement nest-egg.The treasure of the book is not just the specific choices Vigor recommends (some I yearn for, some I can pass on...), but rather because he describes in good detail why he made each selection. What is the type of ballast, construction, comfort available and storage capacity -as well as, very importantly, what is the vessel's actual track-record for voyaging. Although these are all smallish boats but contemporary standards, where one seemingly needs at least 50ft to be acceptable to make the jump across from Florida, Vigor is not writing about blue-water sailing as a trivial exploit or cheap stunt, but as a serious seamanlike endeavor worthy of serious contemplation and using serious tools - which the vessels he recommends generally are.This is a pocket-sized book, but crammed with useable information for a skipper researching reality-sized craft for whatever reason, and is highly recommended for those on a budget or those who have done their time on larger craft and are returning to something a bit more gracious, nimble and enjoyable - all without giving up on the penchant to see what is over the horizon.

Book is from many years ago - but featured my International Folkboat that was destroyed in Hurricane Sandy. Well written overview of the topic.

Awesome book. Teaches you so much as you read through the boat summaries.

Perfect book for anyone entertaining the thought of circumnavigating or even coastal cruising in a boat shorter than 30' LOD. Vigor guides you through 20 small boats capable of tackling bluewater. He isn't a salesman and cautions readers that even though the Catalina 27 is in the book it might not be wise to take it around the world without serious outfitting and preparation. Likewise he is conscious of the light wallet problem, and offers estimates for the cost of the vessels new and used. The pages of this nifty little starter book turn quickly and like bellows spur on the little dream we have of cruising without paying for it. On the downside I wish he'd included additional costs related to outfitting - something yachts in this size range certainly need. Also the illustrations are bare bones. Some three dimensional cross sections would have been appreciated and gone a long way to augmenting his prose descriptions. Lastly I was hoping for am epilogue or conclusion with Vigor's personal favorite or closing remarks, but instead you're shown the door by an unannotated bibliography. Note that this book is aging. What he calls old is now about 15 years older as of 2015. Overall it's an informative, enjoyable book for anyone whether you want to sail in bluewater or in daydreams.

Bought this book and though it was great.A list of small sailboats that can endureharsh ocean sailing conditions. All seaworthy boatswith description of each. Book was so good I usedas my list for buying a sailboat which I did fromthis book.

This is a delightful book to pore over even if -- like me -- you do not expect to buy a sailboat anytime soon. (The book sits by my bedside.) The writing is engaging, the boat schematics are beautiful and simple, and the right parameters are covered and compared for all of the boats. Scanning through this book over and over will spur prolonged reflection on what characteristics are really most important to you in a boat. I keep changing which one is my favorite.

This is a great book if you're on a budget and want to go world cruising. That's not really me, not at this point anyway. Either way, I learned a lot reading this book, about what makes for a sturdy and safe boat at sea. While I probably won't use 95% of the knowledge I read in this book, there are some common sense and safety items that I definitely will be using when I get my first boat. I'll also have a better chance of identifying real quality boats in the marina or when I go shopping.I would have given it four stars, but the author is a tiny bit full of himself and really heavy on jargon. While this might appeal to the salty veteran sailor (which i don't argue this books is probably more targeted at) it is off-putting to the casual sailor who wants to learn more or fantasize about crossing oceans.

I couldn't wait for this book to turn up in the post and it was well worth waiting for. It's a great book packed full of a serious amount of facts, but somehow is still an incredibly interesting read. Only one thing to bear in mind is that this is purely the author's opinion and a few others (as they have reviews from owners) so it may be slightly biased. Also, this book is more swung towards the US than the UK I think, but as far as I can see there isn't a uk one that's similar. These are not negative points, just something to be aware of. If you find out of a uk one similar then let me know!