Steve Sleight's Comprehensive Sailing Guide: 4th Edition

Percival Boyd: good reading

Australia on Jul 03, 2023

A customer: Great book, same DK Quality, since this book is indeed a "manual" it was nice it was handbook size rather than reference size.
It was especially nice it still maintained the DK hardcover/dust jacket and high quality reference paper and printing typical of DK books.

United States on Sep 08, 2021

Kerry: By far, the best illustrated guide to sailing. The images do so much more the fully understand the complex issues of sailing. It’s the best book to start with if you want to learn about sailing.

Canada on Aug 23, 2021

Keith M.: This is a very nice reference for introducing yourself to sailing. It's just what I was looking for. I was worried that it might be too advanced but it's just the right level and progresses as you progress through the book. It covers not only sailing, but things like lights and right of way and tides. I was thinking about getting a sailing for dummies book but I made the right choice buying this.
I had been out a couple times on Hobie Cats and a friend's 30' S2. I got hooked and just got an O'Day Day Sailor III to learn on.

United States on May 21, 2021

Marcelo: I really liked the book. I don't know anything about sailing. I found that the book covers many subjects, mainly about the types of sailboats! I recommend this book !!!

Brazil on Apr 11, 2021

Ian WIan W: This is a great text book that reads really easily and distills sailing down really well. It covers really all types, so applicable to those interested in dinghy sailing as well as cruising. Really enjoyed it and continue to use it as a reference for getting new ideas to improve sailing performance and knowledge. I highly recommend.

Canada on Jan 21, 2021

Mat Greenfield: I recently completed US Sailing Keelboat course (18 hrs) and wanted to continue my education with some online courses, books, and of course more time on the water. This is a well-presented and logically organized book that I've enjoyed both thumbing through as well as reading.

It's an attractive hardback that would make a great gift, or just earn a place on the new sailor's bookshelf. It's a bit too big and heavy to have a place on the boat.

United States on Jul 07, 2020

Andrew SR: I love this book and have learnt so much from it. The graphics and layout are clear and fun to look through. It has been relevant to me for many aspects of sailing from lasers to cruising, boat ownership etc.
Some sections are brief but it is always good enough to set you on the right direction, such as buying, repairs, race skills. Always a great topic overview.

Canada on Dec 29, 2019

Julie G.: I love DK books and bought this for my husband as a gift . It's everything that can be counted on by the DK format; clear concise A to Z on the subject, written and vetted by experts. Whether you know a lot or nothing about sailing this book is informative, and the pictures make it beautiful enough to lay out in the living room. I plan to keep this book around as a reference when we eventually buy our catamaran.....cant say enough good things about it.

United States on Sep 06, 2019

Dalcazar: Masterful reference is a good way to describe this book. It goes over the basics of nearly every single aspect of sailing in enough detail to give you an idea of what to do and how to do it. All important lessons are well illustrated in step-by-step directions, and in a concise way that the whole lesson fits spread across two pages. It manages to convey all this information in such a concise way that the book is still small and portable, any more detail and it would be too thick and heavy to carry around.

You're going to need a lot more more dedicated training for nearly anything this book covers to truly master it, but that's just sailing for you.

Indirectly, this book can also help you choose the kind of boat you might want to get into, and it covers everything from big Catamarans (no trimaran coverage to speak of in here) to the smallest of sailboats. With a lot of content covering race boats both large and small and their idiosyncrasies.

If you're even remotely interested in learning to sail, I recommend you get this book first and read it cover-to-cover. You'll get an idea of the massive amount of knowledge that is required in order to sail safely and...

United States on Jan 05, 2018