Cork Boat

by John Pollack

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In the late 1990s John Pollack was working as a Washington speechwriter when, frustrated by the cynicism and hypocrisy on Capitol Hill, he quit his job to pursue a boyhood dream: to build a boat made entirely of wine corks and take it on an epic journey. Cork Boat tells the story of Pollack’s improbable quest. Overcoming one obstacle after another, he convinces skeptical bartenders to save their corks, corrals a brilliant but disorganized partner, and eventually cajoles more than one hundred volunteers who help build the boat until their fingers bleed. Ultimately, Pollack completes his vessel of 165,321 corks and sets sail on a fantastic voyage down the Douro River in Portugal, where the Cork Boat becomes a national sensation. In recounting these adventures, Pollack skillfully meanders through fascinating arcana, from the cork wars to the history of rubber bands (some 15,000 of which help hold his boat together). He also offers an insider’s look at the White House, where he was a Presidential speechwriter and enlisted navy stewards to save corks for the boat. Written with unusual grace and disarming humor, Cork Boat is a buoyant tale of whimsy, adventure, and the power of imagination. From the Hardcover edition.… (more)

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The author began collecting wine corks after his first boatbuilding effort as a child sank on launching day. Corks float. He grew up, mostly, and eventually became a speechwriter for Bill Clinton. Getting burned out by the politics of Washington, DC, he decided it was finally time to build that cork boat. A monumentally crazy idea. It takes a LOT of wine corks to make a boat, and scrounging them up was quite a task. In the end he had to buy some to supplement the corks he'd collected over the years, and cadged from friends and bartenders. But the boat got built, out of 165,321 corks, held together with 15,000 rubber bands, and he floated in her down the Douro River in Portugal. Cork and wine country.

Pollack doesn't take himself too seriously, but the cork boat project meant a lot to him, and turned into a fine adventure. He writes about it in an entertaining way that keeps you turning the pages. Along the way the book takes excursions into politics, history, corks, rubber bands, and more. Cork Boat is a Good Read. Much, much better than I expected from a book about a crazy stunt.

cootslibrary | Mar 25, 2024 |

I listened to the CD version of this true life account of John Pollack's boyhood dream of building a boat from wine corks. Yeah, really. From the time he was a boy he collected the corks and planned on the boat. This is the story of how it all came together and floated. It is an interestingly told story and only towards the end was it getting a little tedious. (

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susandennis | Jun 5, 2020 |

Mildly interesting, Cork Boat gets bogged down in the minutiae of irrelevant detail and whining. The author’s constant haranguing of his friends and relations to help him with his therapeutic hobby is exhausting. His life as a political speech writer during the Clinton years and through 9/11 is more interesting but glossed over. Some find this story inspirational. I just found it tedious. Unless you’re planning to build a cork boat, I’d give it a hard pass. (

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varielle | Mar 19, 2020 |

Where to start ? Perhaps w the boat - Pollack writes a great memoir here of a boat constructed of unusual materials but suspiciously absent is any mention of whether or how it was made water-tight . . . was it or wasn't it ? How? (

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nkmunn | Nov 17, 2018 |

Well-written. Perhaps the most interesting parts of the book related to his speech-writing days in the White House, as opposed to the building of the cork boat. An interesting and tragic personal story of tragedy and resilience is also nicely weaved throughout. (

)

kenno82 | Sep 23, 2016 |

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Porto, Portugal

Washington, D.C., USA

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September 11 Attacks

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Cork Boat (book)

John Pollack

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In the late 1990s John Pollack was working as a Washington speechwriter when, frustrated by the cynicism and hypocrisy on Capitol Hill, he quit his job to pursue a boyhood dream: to build a boat made entirely of wine corks and take it on an epic journey. Cork Boat tells the story of Pollack’s improbable quest. Overcoming one obstacle after another, he convinces skeptical bartenders to save their corks, corrals a brilliant but disorganized partner, and eventually cajoles more than one hundred volunteers who help build the boat until their fingers bleed. Ultimately, Pollack completes his vessel of 165,321 corks and sets sail on a fantastic voyage down the Douro River in Portugal, where the Cork Boat becomes a national sensation. In recounting these adventures, Pollack skillfully meanders through fascinating arcana, from the cork wars to the history of rubber bands (some 15,000 of which help hold his boat together). He also offers an insider’s look at the White House, where he was a Presidential speechwriter and enlisted navy stewards to save corks for the boat. Written with unusual grace and disarming humor, Cork Boat is a buoyant tale of whimsy, adventure, and the power of imagination. From the Hardcover edition.

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