The poetry of Michael Kahn’s photos takes your breath away. A latter-day Rosenfeld, Michael knows where the heart and passion of sailing are. He directs his lens there. And he captures a voluptuous image in sepia tones. The good old boats that delight his eye have wooden blocks, gaff rigs, square sails, capstans, ratlines . . . poetry whether in motion or at rest.

Perhaps that’s why Michael’s new coffee-table book, The Spirit of Sailing: A Celebration of Sea and Sail, combines sailing quotes, poetry, and images to grace any sailor’s living room or boat cabin. You’ve seen his calendars. Now you can have a printed work of art that lasts longer than a year. And, best of all, this is one coffee-table book that’s affordable . . . like a good old boat.

The Spirit of Sailing: A Celebration of Sea and Sail by Michael Kahn (Courage Books, 2004, 128 pages)