Jennifer Henke

Hans Jacobsen, my father, was born at the end of the 19th century in the Faroe Islands - eighteen small, rocky islands just below the Arctic Circle, north-west of the British Isles. He started sailing full time at age 14 or 15, travelling all around the world before finally settling in San Francisco fifteen years later. In 1916, at age 20, he made his last visit to his homeland. Some 80 years later I travelled alone to the Faroe Islands, longing to see these islands that I knew so little about, hoping to find out about my father's family, but not knowing at all what to expect. "The Missing Son" tells my story of finding my father's family and exploring his homeland, the remote, wild, and beautiful Faroe Islands. Letters to my father from his family from 1917-1924 have been translated from the original Danish, and they give a picture of life in these islands nearly 100 years ago. My father's sailing records and anecdotes from these same years tell of his travels around the world. The letters also revealed a surprising story - my father's fiancée wrote to him for seven years, always hoping he would return to her. He never did. Photographs show the sharp contrasts found in the Faroe Islands - steep cliffs, secluded fjords, lush green hills, quaint villages, and modern homes standing next to stone houses with sod roofs. In its 2007 survey of islands around the world, National Geographic travel experts ranked the Faroe Islands as the number one island travel destination, describing them as "lovely, unspoiled islands - a delight to the traveler." These remote and wildly beautiful islands are beginning to pique the interest of the American public. The Missing Son gives a first-hand view of the islands, the Faroese people, their culture, and their history.

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