Boomeresque:Definition
1. Adj.: Describing a person born between 1 Jan. 1946 and 31 Dec. 1964
2. Adj.: Description of a person, place or thing possessing Baby Boomer je ne sais quoi
3. See also, Boomer, Esq.: A Baby Boomer who is also a licensed attorney (See, e.g., About).

Going Gypsy: One Couple’s Adventure from Empty Nest to No Nest at All – a Boomeresque Book Review

by Suzanne Fluhr on February 6, 2015 · 21 comments

Going Gypsy: One Couple's Adventure from Empty Nest to No Nest at All

It was one of my Millennial sons who suggested I try my hand at travel blogging. “Mom, you like to travel and you like to write. This would be perfect for you.” At the time, the travel blogs with which I was familiar were written by him and his 20 something peers. They were entertaining and some were very well written, but they were all about the imperative for traveling before becoming encumbered with a spouse, kids, a mortgage and a “real” job. Clearly, that ship had already sailed in my case. I started looking for travel blogs written by folks closer to my Baby Boomer demographic. One of the first I found remains a favorite, The Gypsy Nester.

Going Gypsy: One Couple's Adventure from Empty Nest to No Nest at AllDavid and Veronica James are the Gypsy Nesters. When the third of their three children (Decibel, Piglet and The Boy — probably not their real names) left for college, they sold their nest house on Saint Croix and hit the road. That was in 2008 and judging from the travels chronicled in their blog, they have not looked back.

When I scored an advance review copy of their book, Going Gypsy, I anticipated enjoying a longer version of the entertaining and informative travel narratives with which I was familiar from their blog. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised to find that Going Gypsy is not just about travel in the geographic sense. It is also about a couple’s journey through life, the autobiography of a marriage.

In Going Gypsy, Veronica and David take turns chronicling their lives and travels, allowing the reader to view each through the other’s eyes and voice. We learn that Veronica was raised Catholic, that “guilt was in [her] DNA.” But, this didn’t stop her from taking off with an itinerant musician, David, when she was an 18 year old California Valley Girl. She explains the effect motherhood had on her, “Prior to breeding, I was fearless.” Determined to be “the best mother since the Virgin Mary”, she spent the next 20 some years as a helicopter Mom—on steroids. She and David share how she went from being a person for whom a huge risk was switching from a Blackberry to an I-phone to a person who “not only grounded her helicopter, but sold it for scrap to become a risks-be-damned explorer, always looking over the next horizon.”

Actually, Veronica and David didn’t sell Veronica’s helicopter for scrap, they traded it in for a used RV dubbed “BAMF” (Bad Ass Mo Fo) by one of their spawn. They explain how they had to learn to meld their disparate travel styles, Veronica wanting to savor slow travel, while David was on a frenetic mission to find and see every weird, cheesy attraction on the continent. He could not imagine driving by the World’s Largest Ball of Paint. They let us tag along as they figure out how to go from helicopter Mom and a Europe touring professional musician, to a couple together virtually 24/7, with a “big gaping hole where the children used to be”.

If I met Veronica and David in Starbucks and they told me about their journey(s), my reaction would be, “You should write a book.”  I’m happy to say they have —- and you should read it.

Going Gypsy: One Couple’s Adventure from Empty Nest to No Nest at All debuted on Amazon as the number one book in its genre earlier this month based on pre-launch sales. You can purchase your copy directly from Amazon by clicking on the link below:

[Disclosures: I was provided a pre-launch review copy of Going Gypsy for review purposes. If you purchase the book using the Amazon link on this page, Boomeresque receives a tiny commission that does not affect your purchase price.]

{ 19 comments… read them below or add one }

Mike February 7, 2015 at 5:22 am

OMG this was an awesome book review! I know it’s a review but I sat back in my chair at the end of it saying, “What?! Don’t stop there…keep talking about it!” THERE is what a great review is all about. Because I will need to go out and buy the book now to get the rest of the story. Thank you for the great read escape, Suzanne! 🙂

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Suzanne Fluhr February 7, 2015 at 7:10 am

Mike, thanks for the generous review —of my review.

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Jacqueline Gum (Jacquie) February 7, 2015 at 12:10 pm

I love the term “gypsy nesters”. That says it all, right? Great review Suzanne. It’s going on my to be read list:)

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Donna Janke February 9, 2015 at 4:16 am

Great review of a great book. I just finished it. I found I couldn’t put it down once I started reading. I too had expected longer travel narratives similar to the blog posts, but loved reading the story of their lives and their path to becoming gypsy nesters. My husband looked up several times from his own book to find me chuckling. Part way through the book I wanted to invite David and Veronica over for dinner and have a long conversation with them over wine and food.

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Suzanne Fluhr February 9, 2015 at 4:41 pm

Donna, I do hope you get to share a meal and some conversation with Veronica and David someday. (They get around). I think you’d all enjoy each other.

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Anita @ No Particular Place To Go February 9, 2015 at 5:47 pm

I love David and Veronica’s blog and your great review has certainly piqued my interest. “Going Gypsy” will soon be on my Kindle awaiting my reading pleasure!

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Carole T. Meyers February 9, 2015 at 6:07 pm

I’d love to meet these two in a bar sometime, far far from civilization.

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Suzanne Fluhr February 15, 2015 at 10:32 pm

Carole, judging from their travel history, chances are you might actually meet David and Veronica in a bar someday, far far from civilization. 😉

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Irene S. Levine February 9, 2015 at 6:17 pm

Great review! I think you and the gypsy folks share a great sense of humor!

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Betsy Wuebker | PassingThru February 9, 2015 at 7:31 pm

Super review! I’ll queue it up on the Kindle as I’m out of reading material. 🙂

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Shelley February 10, 2015 at 2:18 am

Great review. This has made me more excited to get my old-school printed copy I ordered up here in Canada.

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Suzanne Fluhr February 15, 2015 at 10:33 pm

I kind of wish I had a printed copy too.

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Santafetraveler February 10, 2015 at 1:07 pm

Great review! Can’t wait to read the book. Mine’s in the mail.

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Ryan Biddulph February 10, 2015 at 6:23 pm

Way cool Suzanne. I admire David and Veronica for their journey. Anybody who sprints out of their comfort zone at any age vibes with me because I know how freeing and uncomfy it can be to leave behind the “hometown” life 😉 I prefer to make the world my home, or at least Bali, for the next 4 months.

Piglet…hehehe…what a trio 🙂

Thanks so much for sharing the review!

Ryan

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Suzanne Fluhr February 15, 2015 at 10:46 pm

Ryan, as far as I can tell, their three children are still speaking to them too. Of course, my husband, Mr. Excitement on my blog, is still speaking to me and even inviting me along as a trailing spouse if he has a good work trip.

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Michele February 12, 2015 at 4:36 am

I have heard a bit about this book recently and thought well we have almost done that just not sold the nest…I don’t need to read this book however after reading this review I want to read it. I am looking forward to reading about their journey. Thanks for reviewing it.

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Suzanne Fluhr February 17, 2015 at 10:19 pm

Michele, I think everybody’s nest empties differently. I enjoy reading how others do it—even if I think there are similarities with our own tale. I hope you enjoy the book as much as I did.

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Judy Freedman February 17, 2015 at 6:57 pm

They are such a fun couple. Can’t wait to read their new book.

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Afrah March 27, 2015 at 11:40 am

looks like a book I would like to read.

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