We got a very nice email from John Waller asking us to help promote the story of his father. John has put the story of his father into a book.
Atlantic Affair is a true story of heroism, endurance and survival. The hero is Irish yachtsman Otway Waller who was described by the Irish Times in 1930 as ‘a fearless fellow’. He invented the ‘running sails’, which enabled his 26ft yawl to self-steer for days before the wind in his epic single-handed Atlantic voyage starting down the Shannon. The Tatler of 1931 described the invention as of ‘vital interest to sea-going yachtsmen’. The book includes his logbook and technical details of his invention.
Brought down with Canary Fever, he is unable to complete the journey round the world, following the route taken by his long-term friend Conor O’Brien. He recalls his courtship to an Englishwoman and returns to Ireland to face a divorce, the split in his family and community, the torching of his house in East Galway and being forced out of Ireland by a UK monopoly supplier of farm chemicals.
Details can be found on www.freedombooksandplays.com
The book has already been review by in Cork byMarcus Connaughton (RTE Seascapes), who “thoroughly enjoyed reading Atlantic Affair”, and by Tom MacSweeney previously of Seascapes, for his new programme Our Island Nation starting in January.
Atlantic Affair by John Waller, costing €12.99/£9.99 and can be found in Easons.
