Locally Produced Memoir Up For PNW Literary Award: Reading at Darvills

Thursday, September 22, 6 p.m., Darvills

— from Matt C. Khachadoorian —

Inland Waters Press in Olga just published a non-fiction book set in the Pacific Northwest and the San Juan Islands. Tranquility: A memoir of an American sailor, came out in June of this year and it was immediately nominated for a 2017 Pacific Northwest Bookseller’s Association Award. It is being distributed nation-wide by Baker&Taylor. This is one of the oldest and largest book distributors in the United States.

The author will be on island next week for a reading and signing at Darvill’s Bookstore. Please join William Stewart Sparrow And Inland Waters Press for a fun filled evening of storytelling and laughs at Darvill’s.

This gripping memoir became an instant Pacific Northwest classic. It Recounts the unbelievable but true tale of a young man who buys an old wooden sailboat in Seattle and immediately embarks on a three-week summer cruise down the west coast. He thinks he’s bound for the little-known southern California island paradise of his youth. Unfortunately, nothing goes as planned and by the time Billy realizes the boat isn’t up to the task, it’s too late for Billy—or the reader—to turn back.

• 2017 Pacific Northwest Bookseller’s Association Award Nominee
• Staff Favorite at Darvill’s, Powell’s, and University Bookstore

“While many of us have dreamed of leaving it all behind and embarking on an epic ad- venture, Billy Sparrow actually did it. In 1997 he cashed in his savings and bought an old wooden sailboat called Tranquility (which proved to be anything but tranquil). The account of his journey is both inspiring and entertaining. It’s the type of book that should come with a warning sticker that says, “Caution: May cause reader to quit job, leave family, sell house, and set off for parts unknown!” — Shawn Donley, President, Pacific Northwest Bookseller’s Association.