Leanne Olson

by Randall Sullivan, narrated by Lynch Travis

published June 6, 2023 from Dreamscape Media and Grove Atlantic

Graveyard of the Pacific is a fascinating mix of memoir, adventure, and history.

Randall Sullivan writes about his attempt to cross the Columbia River Bar in a kayak with his friend, Ray. The Bar is where the Columbia River flows into the Pacific Ocean; over 2,000 ships have been wrecked in this location.

Sullivan gives the history of crossings of the bar, highlighting the people, politics, and economics involved in some of the biggest disasters.  He describes them vividly and I loved his look at the personalities behind the sailors and rescuers.  Some of the stories are exciting and some are heartbreaking.

Sullivan also takes a hard look at his own motivations for trying to cross the deadly waterway in a kayak, at the age of 70.  I wasn’t expecting the heavy focus on memoir in this book, but it was a fascinating, moving read.  Sullivan talks about the history of his family and the abuse he survived at the hands of his father, a former sailor. Sullivan shares his own views on toxic masculinity and generational trauma.

I’m not normally a memoir reader but I found myself completely captivated.  Lynch Travis’s immersive narration of the audiobook definitely helped suck me in.  

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Thank you to Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for my review copy of this audiobook.