Maggie Shipstead's 6 favorite works about the sea and sky
The novelist recommends works by Peter Nichols, Mark Vanhoenacker, and more

In her novel Great Circle — an acclaimed best-seller now in paperback — Maggie Shipstead interwove the stories of a missing 1950s female aviator and a film actress hired to play her. Below, Shipstead recommends six other books about the sea or sky.
A Voyage for Madmen by Peter Nichols (2001)
This is a riveting account of a 1968-69 round-the-world solo-sailing race, in which nine yachtsmen set out and only one finished. Nichols expertly tells how the others were picked off by storms, wrecks, illness, loneliness, fatigue, idealism (oddly enough), and, in one case, the impossible, madness-inducing burden of deception. Buy it here.
The Outlaw Sea by William Langewiesche (2004)
I'm a huge admirer of Langewiesche's aviation writing, too, but this book changed the way I understand the world. Without wasting a word, he lays bare the hardships of merchant sailors, the dangers of piracy and of maritime accidents, and the formidable challenges of imposing order on the vast and borderless ocean. Buy it here.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
West With the Night by Beryl Markham (1942)
Markham's iconic and exceptionally elegant memoir of growing up as the ultimate free-range child in Kenya culminates in her historic westbound flight across the Atlantic, the first-ever solo and nonstop against the wind. A spare but vivid glimpse of a singular woman. Buy it here.
Maiden Voyage by Tania Aebi (1989)
In 1985, Aebi's father gave her an ultimatum: Go to college or sail solo around the world. She chose sailing. I read this account of her journey when I was a teenager and was enraptured by the glamour (and eventual romance) of her adventure, though she doesn't sugarcoat her struggles, frustrations, and doubts. Buy it here.
Spreading My Wings by Diana Barnato Walker (1994)
A fast-living English society girl and hobbyist pilot, Walker spent World War II ferrying warplanes around the U.K. and to Europe. She chronicles those years in this chatty memoir full of hijinks, close scrapes, and losses. Reading it feels like spending a rainy afternoon at the feet of your favorite great-aunt, regaled with anecdotes from an extremely well-lived life. Buy it here.
Skyfaring by Mark Vanhoenacker (2015)
It's easy to forget what an astonishing, recent thing it is that we can freely traverse this planet's skies. Vanhoenacker, a 747 pilot, has not lost his sense of awe, and his wise, deliberate book offers behind-the-scenes tidbits and philosophical musings on flight, beauty, and our planet. Buy it here.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
This article was first published in the latest issue of The Week magazine. If you want to read more like it, you can try six risk-free issues of the magazine here.
-
Gandhi arrests: Narendra Modi's 'vendetta' against India's opposition
The Explainer Another episode threatens to spark uproar in the Indian PM's long-running battle against the country's first family
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK
-
How the woke right gained power in the US
Under the radar The term has grown in prominence since Donald Trump returned to the White House
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK
-
Codeword: April 24, 2025
The Week's daily codeword puzzle
By The Week Staff
-
Susan Page's 6 favorite books about historical figures who stood up to authority
Feature The USA Today's Washington bureau chief recommends works by Catherine Clinton, Alexei Navalny, and more
By The Week US
-
Ione Skye's 6 favorite books about love and loss
Feature The actress recommends works by James Baldwin, Nora Ephron, and more
By The Week US
-
Colum McCann's 6 favorite books that take place at sea
Feature The National Book Award-winning author recommends works by Ernest Hemingway, Herman Melville, and more
By The Week US
-
Max Allan Collins’ 6 favorite books that feature private detectives
Feature The mystery writer recommends works by Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, and more
By The Week US
-
John McWhorter’s 6 favorite books that are rooted in history
Feature The Columbia University professor recommends works by Lyla Sage, Sally Thorne, and more
By The Week US
-
Abdulrazak Gurnah's 6 favorite books about war and colonialism
Feature The Nobel Prize winner recommends works by Michael Ondaatje, Toni Morrison, and more
By The Week US
-
Elliot Ackerman’s 6 favorite books on war and duty
Feature The Marine veteran recommends works by Robert A. Heinlein, John le Carré, and more
By The Week US
-
Xochitl Gonzalez’s 6 favorite books that shaped her storytelling
Feature The best-selling author recommends works by Stephen King, Julian Barnes, and more
By The Week US