Swan Song

It's all about living aboard a boat full time with the adventures that accompany life on the sea. The author's husband, Jim, had the expertise and desire to live aboard a cruising yacht twenty-four-seven, and Swan Song presents the extremes of that life. The sea was both sincerely beloved and fearfully respected. But always adventurous, from calm waters to stormy seas, from happy porpoises to elusive herons. There were no dull days. Included in Swan Song is a humorous saga about buying a boat entitled "Seven Coats of Varnish on the Teak," and it's a wild ride with a couple who forgot to check the details. There are poems that comment on today's social and political culture such as "The Single Parent Home" and "Waco," a chilling account of the burning of a Christian church in Texas. Other poems like "Time" are a beautiful tribute to the cruising lifestyle. The solitude and communion with nature is celebrated in verses such as "The Porpoise." Swan Song is Nan's first book about the sea since Jim's death in July of 2010, and it is dedicated to Jim Baker, the man who made it happen.

Nan Baker is a native Texan. She worked at writing before becoming a freelance writer for national publications. Most of her prose has been published in boating and yachting magazines. Her love of poetry found expression during the isolation of living and cruising aboard a yacht. Swan Song is a window looking into this way of life. This is Nan's first book of poetry following her husband's death in 2010.