Any sailor worth their salt understands the flying jibe: a dangerous maneuver that causes the main sail to whip across the deck at high speed, injuring anyone in its path. They know when to expect it, how to prepare for it, and how to survive it.

Mary Kate McCarty is a sailor. In her memoir, Flying Jibe, she takes us sailing through an ocean of wild extremes. From idyllic summers racing her boats on Nantucket Sound to cold winters living on public assistance, her essays form a grim tale of madness and its consequences.

Based on her life growing up in a large and prominent Irish-Catholic family, McCarty takes the helm and steers us through a privileged world of power, politics and money. When that gentle wind turns wild, she navigates us through stormy waters: alcoholism, infidelity, violence, mental illness and prison.

Through a dark fog, McCarty manages to right the boat that is her life. She surfaces triumphant. She has survived the flying jibe.