Top Award. The Grand Prize of Boating Writer's International, the 2008 West Marine Writer's Award, was presented to Marlin Bree for his article, The Old Man and the Inland Sea. Read this article in Magazines. Bree is the only two-time winner of the coveted West Marine Writing Award.

Newest book The Dangerous Book for Boaters is Marlin's newest book and contains a lot of boating humor. For more information, click on the book title in the right hand column.

New Award: Marlin Bree won a second place BWI writing award for his Ensign article on Courage of the Sole Survivor.

New Award: Marlin Bree won a BWI 2008 second-place writing award for his Ensign article on rebuilding Persistence's transom.

Marlin Bree accepts the 2008 West Marine Writer's Award from Boating Writer's International President Kim Kavin (left) and Laurie Fried, Director of Community Relations for West Marine. Bree holds the crystal trophy and a presentation check for $5,000. More details inside.

The Old Man & The Inland Sea by Marlin Bree won a First Place award in the 2007 BWI Annual Writing Contest and was awarded BWI's highest honor: the 2008 West Marine Writer/s Award. Check out the PDF article, other stuff by clicking on magazines.

TOP AWARD. The author was the recipient of the 2004 West Marine Writer's Award -- the top award Boating Writer's International gives to a boating writer. For more details, click on Magazines.

Technical Writing: Marlin Bree was awarded a Third Place award in the Technical Writing Category in the 2006 Annual Writing Contest by Boating Writers International for his Small boats, big challenges: Lessons and statistic crunches from successful mini-cruisers. It was published by Small Craft Advisor magazine.

AWARD Marlin Bree's The Passion of Mike Plant was awarded a Certificate of Merit in the 2005 Boating Writers International excellence in boating journalism contest. The award-winning magazine series was based on a chapter in the author's book, Broken Seas.

Award! The author won a third place award in the 2003 Annual Writing Contest of Boating Writers International for "excellence in boating journalism" for his first-person story of how he met his "Storm of the Century." The same story went on to win the top award Boating Writer's International gives to a boating writer -- The West Marine Writer's Award.

This web site is the recipient of a 2002-2003 and the 2003 -2004 Golden Web Award.

Wake of the Green Storm is the author's first-person account of surviving Superior's Perfect Storm.

ACCLAIM FOR
MARLIN BREE'S
SAILING BOOKS


A voyageur's tale of sailing solo, occasionally in dark seas, on Lake Superior. A lovingly written story.
--Baltimore Sun

How does a 20-foot centerboard sloop take on Superior, the largest Great Lake, the deepest, coldest and deadliest? Like a fly in a roomful of swatters...Marlin Bree is often whumped back inside the infrequent breakwaters by almost daily thunderstorms. Fascinating.
--Sail Magazine

Bree and his Persistence dared greatly, struggled greatly and had a worthy run, told with touching candor. Bree is at his best when the lake was at its worst.
-- Wilmington Evening Journal

Captures the feel and wild spirit of one of the most beautiful but treacherous bodies of water in the world.
-Star-Tribune, Minneapolis
Reviewed by Ken Wisneski

His evocative narrative is both an adventure --
he encountered several fierce storms -- and an anecdotal history of the lake, with tidbits on Indians, voyageurs, miners, sea captains and colorful local inhabitants, as well as tales of wind, weather, icy (and sometimes frozen) water, and shipwrekcs. An enjoyable ramble for yachting enthusiasts.
--Publisher's Weekly

This great sea story is more than just a fine adventure. Bree packs the book with the legends that have created such a special aura around the lake, from famous shipwrecks, lost gold mines and great storms to the almost unbelievablew story of the world's richest silver mine. Not to be missed.
Flint (MI) Journal

The turbulent, wind-whipped, wave-washed story of a solo ship voyage on Lake Superior. Along the way we hear many fine and gruesome shipwreck tales and fascinating lore of the deep water. Rugged, tough..a crackling good book.
---Neshoba Democrat
Philadelphia, MS

An electrifying story...certainly the most gripping, passionate account of a voyage since Men Against the Sea. The text crackles with tension.
--Brian Richard Boylan
Author of Final Trace

Marlin Bree's writings are a delightful combination of adventure, history, and lake lore. He plies the big water in a twenty foot wooden sailboat he built in his back yard."
--Minnesota Historical Society
Reviewed by Pat Coleman



More pictures of Persistence;
News of author appearances

Click on My Boat above to see more pictures of Persistence, some of which were shot during the author's trek in which he encountered the Green Storm.


Copyright notice

All photographs, illustrations, charts and excerpts from books used on these web pages are from books and publications copyrighted by Marlin Bree. All rights are reserved, including all under International and Pan American copyright conventions. No part of this web site, illustrations, text, or photographs, may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, electronic or mechanical, including e-mail, photocopy, recording, printing, or any storage and retrieval system now known or to be invented, without written permission from the author, Marlin Bree, except by a reviewer who wishes to quite brief passages in a review written for a magazine, newspaper or for broadcast.

Welcome aboard!

Here's the home site of award-winning sailing author and boating journalist Marlin Bree, with news about his activities, his books, his magazine articles, his noble boat, the Persistence, his boat building techniques, and his many voyages on Lake Superior.

Ahoy!Author Marlin Bree stands at the bow of his 20-foot wooden sailboat, Persistence, that he built himself. The wood veneer-epoxy sloop has been a featured character in all of the author's books on sailing Lake Superior and has survived several horrific storms. (Photo: Good Age)

My Boat, The Cover Girl: That's Persistence on the cover of The Ensign magazine -- and isn't she a beauty? The accompanying story, Classic Craft gets a face-lift, explained how I worked on her transom. To get a link on this interesting Ensign story, click on magazines (above).

Magazine Stuff:

Look for these exciting
Marlin Bree magazine articles

Hard Times on Bree's Reef Look for this four-page feature on my sailing adventures in the Small Craft Advisor magazine for July/August 2009. Yes, I really did get into trouble running aground on a remote island and as the headline points out, "When you're sailing solo on Superior, discovering a new reef isn't all it's cracked up to be." Ho. Ho. I can laugh now. The SCA feature is complete with chart, color photo and a Self Analysis of What I did wrong (too much reliance upon the GPS, among other faults) and What I did right (I kept trying different options until something finally worked).

Across the top of the world. Take a gander at the humongous Bering Sea waves in Marlin Bree's story in Cruising World about how a Minnesota sailor pushed his boat and crew across the top of the world -- to become the first American sailboat to cross the infamous Northwest Passage. Yes, that Passage, whose fame has spread over the centuries for its storms, shipwrecks, high seas, fog -- and an ever-present danger of ice packs. Read Marlin's article about Cloud Nine and its magnificent crew in the March 2008 Cruising World's upfront Shoreline section. Don't miss the waves.

Classic Craft gets a face-lift: Marlin's article with color photography about building and fitting his own Persistence's new stern is in the March/April 2008 issue of The Ensign magazine. (Go to magazines above to get a link to the article). Gorgeous photography!

Cockpit comfort ahead! In the March/April 2008 issue of DIY Boat Owners Magazine, there's a Marlin Bree article with illustration on Armchair Comfort for your Cockpit. The do-it-yourself article came about as a result of the author's own heart-felt search for a better way to spend long hours sitting in the cockpit, soloing in Persistence. Now his tail is told!

Small Craft Advisor features The Way of the Tiller in February 2008. In the article, the author argues the best sailing is done with tiller, not wheel steering -- and why. Featured are the author's innovations in fitting out a tiller on Persistence.

Look for more Marlin Bree articles in DIY throughout 2008. For other Marlin Bree magazine articles, check out Marlin's Magazines (top shelf, above) such as the PDF downloadable on The Old Man & the Inland Sea that won the 2007 First Place writing award; Keeping Outboards Running, Maybe Forever, with weblink,Northern Breezes magazine) and, Small Craft: Big Challenges: Lessons and Statistic Crunches from Successful Minicruisers at Small Craft Advisor. You'll find some downloadable PDF's and other good reading matter.All free.

Marlin Bree was featured in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune's article, My Fabulous boat, in June 2008.

WHAT YOU CAN FIND IN THIS ISSUE

MEET THE THE BOAT IN PERSON (Well, sort of) For close-up color photography of the author's hand-built sloop, Persistence, click on Das Boot (above). The devil, as they say, is in the details. You'll see some devilishly interesting wooden boatbuilding here.

READ SEAFARING STORIES! You can browse excerpts from the author's seafaring stories in his books, including the new Broken Seas: True Tales of Extraordinary Seafaring Adventures. Just click the title on the right.

FREE ADDED ATTRACTIONS: Browse through various magazine articles, more boat pictures and diagrams, news items, boating tips, and some choice book excerpts, which get added to from time to time. The author in particular likes these.

FIND OUT ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Click on the BIO (above) and you will get more information about Marlin Bree than you probably will want. The Bio started out short, but grew over the years, and the author apologizes about that.


WHAT THEY'RE SAYING

Bree's New Book: Says Small Craft Advisor: Author Marlin Bree has a new book out and it's a little different this time -- The Dangerous Book for Boaters, a humorous waterfront guide to the ways and wiles of boaters. This 96-page pocket-sized hodge podge of nautical comedy includes sage tropes like: When in danger/or in doubt/ Run around/ yell and shout and The navigator who says it cannot be done shouldn't interrupt the navigator who is actually doint it.

"Super read: In its November issue, The Ensign magazine says of Broken Seas: "Author Marlin Bree makes true sailing adventures live again...With each story, we feel the excitement of the cruise and the terror of the final moment when all might be lost. Broken Seas is a super read for those of us who dream of adventure on the sometimes cruel sea." The Ensign review was written by Stf/C Don Dunlap Jr., SN

"Mucho Adventure," writes Small Craft Advisor editor Joshua Colvin about the author's new book, Broken Seas. "..some of the true tales in his latest volume had me sitting up wide-eyed, well past my dreamland deadline. In 216 pages, Bree manages to take the reader aboard all kinds of vessels, often in the worst conditions imaginable. Whether he's writing about Gerry Spiess' 10-footer Yankee Girl knocked flat in in the middle of the Pacific, or the storm driven destruction of the 729-foot Edmund Fitzgerald, Bree rarely lets his reader up for breath. If you enjoy this sort of thing--and who doesn't--you'll want to add Bree's new book to your library. Just don't plan to catch up on any sleep."

"A keeper" says Cruising World (Aug. 2005) about Broken Seas: "Sea-story fans will find in these pages six varied accounts ranging from a passage across the Pacific in a 10-foot sloop to the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald during a Lake Superior storm. Readers who enjoy adventure narratives won't be disappointed."


Resting his arm on the furled mainsail, Marlin Bree relaxes in Peristence's hatch. Control lines below his right arm are led aft to the cockpit for solo sailing: (bottom up) jib furler, boom downhaul, and (around winch) main halyard. White cover is for main compass, one of four on boat.

How to find your way
around these pages

This web site will let you look over some of the books you've been hearing about by author Marlin Bree. To get a quick overview, click on Books (above) or on the book titles listed in blue on the right. Each title has sample excepts for you to enjoy -- the author has not been stingy.

There are six categories in the blue banner above. Click on them to see more about the author, his books, his boat and voyages, magazine articles or boating tips. For example, to see more pictures of Persistence, click on Das Boot.

To get in touch with the author, click on the e-mail quick link on the right. A box inside tells you how to get the author's books from a variety of sources.

Great
boating
adventures
dead ahead

The Dangerous Book for Boaters
A humorous waterfront guide to the ways and wiles of boaters
Broken Seas
True tales of extraordinary seafaring adventures.
Wake of the Green Storm: A survivor's tale
Marlin Bree and his wooden boat survive "The storm of the Century's" 100 mph winds on Lake Superior
Call of the North Wind
Along the Shipwreck Coast by catamaran, the author retraces lost ships and finds sagas of heroic sea captains
In the Teeth of the Northeaster
A gripping adventure of a small boat skipper on one of the world's most dangerous bodies of water
Boat Log & Record
Third Edition. A best-selling pleasure boater's log book and record keeper
Alone Against the Atlantic
A ten-foot boat crosses the North Atlantic to a new world record. A classic nautical adventure!

Quick Links
to put you in touch

Click here to get Marlin Bree's e-mail address and get in touch with the author. He appreciates hearing from his readers and from fellow sailors and usually answers brief inquiries or questions.
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