https://tommykennedyiv.com/blog/reading-a-1o00-books-over-a-lifetime

How Papillon and my father’s Merchant Navy stories sparked my love of travel, adventure, and storytelling despite life’s setbacks.

Papillon Ignited My Love of Adventure
The book Papillon sparked my lifelong love of travel and adventure. Henri Charrière’s story of imprisonment and daring escapes in 1930s French Guiana captivated me as a youngster in the 1970s, and it shaped how I saw the world. Every page felt like a ticket to freedom, a window into a life of risk, courage, and determination.

My Father and the Merchant Navy Tales

My father served in the Merchant Navy, and his stories of far-off ports, strange foods, and endless horizons added fuel to that fire. I would listen wide-eyed, imagining the sights, the smells, and the storms at sea. Those tales, combined with Charrière’s memoir, planted a seed in me—a yearning to explore beyond the streets I knew.

Life Took a Different Path
I wanted to follow that path myself, but life had other plans. Despite my desire to join the Navy, my criminal convictions closed that door. At first, it was a bitter disappointment, but it also became a lesson: adventure doesn’t always come in the form we expect. It can be found in books, in imagination, and in the choices we make afterward.

Lessons Learned from Imagination and Travel
Looking back, Papillon and my father’s stories gave me more than wanderlust. They taught resilience, resourcefulness, and the power of storytelling. Those lessons later shaped my writing and perspective on life. I learned that adventure can be internal as well as external, and that every story—real or imagined—has the power to transform a life.

For anyone who loves stories of courage and freedom, Papillon is a reminder that the world is bigger than our setbacks, and curiosity will always chart a course beyond the walls that try to contain us.


Papillon, Henri Charrière, Merchant Navy, Travel stories, Adventure, Memoir, 1970s childhood, Writing inspiration



My Life in Noir: Stories from London and Beyond

Reading and Writing: How Books Shaped My Mind


Papillon and my father’s Merchant Navy tales ignited my love of travel and adventure, teaching resilience, storytelling, and curiosity despite life’s setbacks.