Buying a sailboat is not something generally done on a whim. When Gwen and her husband Dan tired of their small powerboat, they decided to buy a sailboat large enough to sail across the Atlantic.

Their "shake-down cruise" involved sailing from their home port in Rhode Island over 700 miles to Bermuda. Along the way, they encountered severe weather, 30-foot-high waves, nasty seasickness, and lots of equipment failures.

With undampened spirits, the Riggs set course for Europe three years later. Duke, a spirited young Lhasa Apso, joined them for their adventure across the Atlantic. Their sails would bring them to ports all around the Mediterranean, to the Scandinavian countries and northern Europe.

Author Gwen Riggs's breathtaking journey across the Atlantic is dutifully recorded in her own words in A Reluctant First Mate's Journal. You won't have to leave the comfort of your home to re-live every exciting moment