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A Pirate Looks at Fifty
by Jimmy Buffett

Singer songwriter Jimmy Buffett is not only a great performer, but an excellent and engaging writer. It is the mark of a good performer to give people what they want and to connect with the audience. In this, his most autobiographical book to date, Buffett uses a three week trip throughout the Caribbean and South America as a vehicle for his musings on growing up, Roman Catholicism, the gulf coast, ecotourism, fishing and marriage, plus so much more.

As a fiftieth birthday present to himself, Buffett takes himself, his wife, two of his children, myriad family friends, pilots and assistants on a voyage of discovery, through the Caribbean and South American. Having already decided to write a book based on the trip, Buffett kept a journal throughout the trip (on his PDA of course) so the book includes the sort of detail that brings a trip to life for the reader. I sense that Buffett learned a lot about himself through the writing of this book, and the reader will certainly learn a lot about the author.

Buffett is the author of two previous books, and in this one he reached that pinnacle that so many writers strive for - one of only a few writers who have been on both the New York Times fiction and non-fiction bestsellers lists.

Buffett's approach to travel is that of the independent traveler, one who strives to discover the essence of the destination. But, destination is not everything to him. As a descriptive, travel narrative, this book instantly draws the reader in to the narrative. Buffett, a seaplane pilot, flies his own plane to some of the destinations on the trip, and his descriptions of the plane flights include at least as much detail as his descriptions of the destinations. Likewise, when he writes about his boat trip up the Amazon, or his surfing in Costa Rica, the reader will feel the heat and humidity and a strong sense of being there.

Buffett is a master at tying together the threads of his life. According to Buffet, songlines run through our lives and provide the thread and continuity that tie things together, as well as the dramatic element that keeps us going. It is these songlines that pervade Buffett's narrative.

As a train traveler, I understand Buffett's sentiments He states, "...when you go off adventuring, part of the adventure is the unpredictable. That is what really separates travelers from tourists." And, he certainly has his share of unpredictable occurrences on this trip, from an unplanned landing in a Columbia airport, filled with gun toting personnel, to a leg reinjury while surfing.

Yet, his sense of humor persists and at the end of the book I found myself not only admiring Buffett's sense of self, but also becoming anxious for his next book. A Pirate Looks at Fifty, published in 1998, is available in paperback at www.Amazon.com. Take it along on your next trip, and mark those pages that will give you comfort when your train is late, or the weather is not what you had hoped for. A Pirate Looks at Fifty is fun and engaging and the perfect length for a three day train trip.

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