Thundery at Times: Katie Carr on Sea-Kayaking the Shipping Forecast

The hopeful, honest and humorous story of one woman's attempt to finish the challenge left to her by her brother: to sea kayak in every area of the Shipping Forecast

Katie had never been in a sea kayak, but when her brother Toby died in the middle of his challenge to paddle in every area of the Shipping Forecast, she decided to honour his memory by completing his adventure. On a journey that takes her from the monotonies of motherhood in urban Barcelona to the far reaches of the Shipping Forecast through the wilds of the British Isles, Katie is forced to face her past and question her present, exploring the loss of her family members as well as her own identity. After two years of inelegant paddling and potentially worse parenting, can she finally cross the finish line?

Thundery at Times is not a story of battling high seas or completing daring tasks, but one of making your own rules and living life to the full. It is about finding joy and hope in nature, motherhood and middle age, in nurturing your own adventures and embracing connection and peace. It is a story of female resilience in the face of adversity; of staring down grief and asking, what's possible from here?

'A sea-salted memoir, as steadying and compelling as the Shipping Forecast. Thundery at Times charts the uncertainty of grief with a voice that is both tender and courageous' -Zeb Soanes, broadcaster and author

'Katie's pilgrimage through the Shipping Forecast isn't about heroic feats, but about the simple, stubborn magic of keeping going. It's a tender, human adventure that reveals what can unfold when you honour a promise and keep paddling forwards.' -Alastair Humphreys, adventurer and author

'An inspiring tale, brimming with can-do and positivity.'- Tristan Gooley, author of The Natural Navigator

'Like the Shipping Forecast itself, Thundery at Times is quirky and eccentric but underpinned by extraordinary heart and substance. A remarkable book. More, please.'-Charlie Connelly, author of Attention All Shipping

About the author:

Katie Annice Carr is a leadership lecturer, coach and author based in Barcelona. Between training executives to embrace storytelling and self-reflection and wrangling her two young boys, she enjoys art, nature and challenge. She wrote her first book, Moderate Becoming Good Later, from her late brother Toby's notes, telling his story in his voice; now she tells her own.

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