You won't be disappointed in this story -- we've loaned it out to most of our family and some of our friends when they take "water vacations". Its a fun read.


Laughter is the Best Medicine   April 23, 2001
 3 out of 3 found this review helpful

I had a heart attack in 1993, and spent some time in the hospital. A friend gave me The Boat Who Wouldn't Float. It was the only book I have ever read (and I read a lot) that caused me to laugh out loud over and over. I just had to read passages aloud to my wife, and then she read it, and we laughed together. It may have helped me get better. Whether it did or not, it'a a treasure. I'm surprised it's classified as a children's book; it doesn't strike me that way, though it's OK for older children. Adults should buy it and get in on the fun!


vintage mowat, but shows more about his darker character...   March 25, 2001
 1 out of 3 found this review helpful

this was a beautiful book about a time and a place and a world about which i knew little, and as usual farley mowat does his brilliant job of bringing it to life in full radiance, and of personifying the non-human in a unique and gripping way.

weak points: this book, more than the others i previously read by him, showed more about the real character of farley mowat, and in this book he struck me as a very unhappy man, both depressed and even alcoholic. i'm glad to have read it however, as it not only gives me insight into him as the author of this book, but into the underlying character of the author who wrote his other wonderful, and less dark, books.

also, honestly, this wasn't a particularly deep book. it sort of "appears" to be deep, but like his boat, sorta skims across the surface.


This one is NOT just for children - read it yourself!   March 17, 2001
 15 out of 17 found this review helpful

Farley Mowat is the kind of writer whose words flow across the page as easily as breathing - and what a delight those words are! I've never sailed, I'm not a boat lover and yet I could not put down this true tale of one man's adventures getting a primitive vessel into seaworthy shape. Several pages had me laughing out loud, especially Mowat's account of drinking Screech, an alcoholic beverage of near deadly strength.While this book is classified as a "children's" book, I think it is far more suitable for adults, who may appreciate some of the humor here with an adult's perspective. Then again, if you have a reluctant reader, I can't think of a better book to keep him or her reading. I guess this book is actually for the WHOLE family.


The Boat Who Wouldn't Float   December 13, 2000
 2 out of 3 found this review helpful

One dark and stormy night we pulled up to the Harborview Bed and Breakfast at the mouth of the Margaree River on Cape Breton Island Nova Scotia. The car headlights fell across the bow of "The Happy Adventure" of The Boat Who Wouldn't Float.The very vessel that was to transport Farley and his friend Jack to endless adventures in far away tropical islands but from the start refuses to leave Muddy Hole, Newfoundland(her birthing place).Farley Mowat is a master story teller and he is in top form as he yanks us aboard and sets sail. It's a mighty struggle to keep her afloat as she makes several attempts to commit nautical suicide but Farley is up to the task. He bullies,he cajoles and finally makes a deal she couldn't refuse.