True Spirit

Jessica Watson

‘I don’t know when that was and I don’t remember jumping into the pool that day, it is just a story my mum tells. But somewhere between that moment and sailing out of Sydney Harbour on Ella’s Pink Lady, I came to understand what Helen Keller said far better than I can – ‘Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing’.’

These are Jessica’s words, taken from True Spirit. In it she details the extensive preparation she and her team made for the big voyage, her journey and the battles she fought along the way – against sleep deprivation, gale-force winds, mountainous seas and the solitude most of us can only imagine. When she sailed back into Sydney Harbour on 15 May 2010, after 210 days at sea, she was cheered in by a huge crowd that included Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. To many, Jessica was our newest hero. She disagreed, saying she wasn’t a hero, ‘just an ordinary girl who had a dream and worked hard at it and proved that anything is possible’. This is her story.

Paperback

ISBN 9780733624971

$29.95

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