Staniel Cay

By Nick Finneran

Sailing, adventure and intrigue in the Exumas! Old Nick Finneran finally tells his story of how, as a teenager in post-World War II 1948, he and his cousin Tony leave the cold Massachusetts winters... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1414034881
• ISBN13: 9781414034881
• Release Date: January 2004
• Publisher: 1st Book Library
• Length: 248 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Absolutely fascinating. So glad he recounted his Experiences on and around Staniel Cay Exumas. A Mus

Absolutely Amazing Accomplishment to write his experiences on StanielCay and the Exumas Islands A must read f

great beach book!

I didn't know much about sailing, nor cared much for it before, but my sailing enthusiast friend recommended this book to me as a "must read". Staniel Cay is darling and proved to be a quick, enjoyable surprise -- so much so that I am now passing the book to my other friends! Enjoy!

Pure Escapism

Looking for a great read to help savor those lazy days of summer? Well search no more! Nick Finneran provides a lively tale based upon his recollection of events of his youth. Readers cannot help to recall the optimism and carefree times of their own youth's as they join Nick and Tony on their adventure. While there are times in the book you wish you could prod the author with a disbelieving "your-pulling-my-leg" stare, it only serves as testimony that you are enjoying a great storyteller who can capture your imagination. Nick's storytelling is a credit to his craft, and I look forward to reading more about his adventures in the (hopefully) not so distant future. Ole!

Finneran brings the Exumas to life.

I liked this book very much. Nick's descriptions of life in Miami and in the Bahamas in the 1950s is vivid. As said by previous reviewers, Staniel Cay is mostly a sailing-cruising book ala Joshua Slocum or Bernard Moitessier. But it also has a nice plot that is very much reminiscent of the old Hardy Boys books. I got the shivers when Nick and Tony were sailing across the many cuts in the Exuma island chain. Finneran is a perfect example of how every man is still a little boy inside (sigh).

This may be the best cruising book of the year!

I too met Finneran in person at the Staniel Cay release party in Chelsea (New York City). I was only there because my girlfriend is a big Manhattan party-planner and was setting up the event, and I look for any opportunity to meet other sailors (I have sailed in the Whitbread and the Volvo). The author gave me a signed copy of Staniel Cay which said "Dear John - Eat Soup!" Finneran really is a nice old guy - Doesn't talk much about himself, but likes to ask all kinds of questions to the young people in the room. I had never heard of Nick Finneran before, but he seems pretty well-connected. Along with the publishing big wigs that were there, I saw Kevin Kline and Julia Louise Dreyfuss. Finneran claims that he was goaded by family and friends into writing down some of his best stories and didn't set out to write a whole book. But write a book he did - and what a book! I really enjoyed it. It is not what I would call a page-turner, but it is definitely a quick read, with a bunch of laughs along the way. Staniel Cay is simply a fun story. Finneran's style is direct, and I've never read anything like it. The writing is a bit clunky at times, but there are also many poetic moments - very much like a conversation with the author himself. Finneran's story telling took me back to my younger days, sitting on my grandfather's lap on the back porch listening to his tales of the Pacific Campaign. If you are a sailor or boating enthusiast like me, I can assure you that Nick knows his boats! Like other readers of this book, I am still trying to figure out how much is true. Then again, who really cares?

Nick Finneran's STANIEL CAY is Pure Nerd Fiction

Review by Freelance Writer Robert Donahue on January 28, 2004Last week, I attended the annual Strictly Sail event, which was held at Chicago's Navy Pier to report on the event for a local newspaper. Quite by accident, I attended a book signing event by author Nick Finneran, where I received a copy of STANIEL CAY. Nick Finneran is a hoot, a real life Walter Middy (a modern day Ernest Hemingway?). Massachusetts-born Finneran has been a champion sailor, a Navy Captain and war hero, successful entrepreneur, philanthropist, fly fishing instructor and confidant to three presidents (or so he says). Throughout my adult life, I have been looking for a grown-up's version of the Hardy Boys. Nick Finneran has done it with STANIEL CAY. STANIEL CAY is pure nerd fiction, although Finneran swears that the events in STANIEL CAY are true. The book is fast-paced, enjoyable and funny. Even if you are not a sailor or fisherman, you will appreciate Finneran's description of his days growing up on Cape Cod, his escape to Miami in 1948, and his adventures in the Bahamas. Finneran takes the reader back to the pre-tourist days in Miami and the Caribbean. Nick and his trusty cousin Tony Finneran (also born in Dorchester) leave the cold Massachusetts winters behind, and go looking for warmer climes in Miami. They discover a wrecked sailboat in the mangroves, which they rebuild and sail to the Bahamas. All along the way, the boys, on the edge of manhood, go fishing, sailing, beer-drinking and happen to uncover a mystery that leads them on a life and death chase through the Exuma Island chain. He has interspersed some great passages throughout the book that make certain moments come alive for the reader. There were many times during the book that I just sat back, took a deep breath, and imagined myself out there on the turquoise waters of the Great Bahama Bank, eating cracked conch and drinking beers with Nick and Tony Finneran. I found STANIEL CAY to be a real page-turner. There aren't a lot of complex twists, Nick just tells it pretty straight, but he keeps the tension high throughout the book. I read the entire book in a couple of one-hour sessions while listening to Jimmy Buffet music and drinking a Corona. There are a few uninteresting passages here and there, but they do not detract from the overall story.