Maine Books

Alan Nyiri's notes accompanying the images caused me to see them differently than I expected to upon sitting down and opening Acadia Panorama. One gets the faintest notion that his use of panoramic equipment puts Nyiri self-consciously outside the norm, as if he were requiring us to use a GAF Viewmaster or employing some contrivance to interpret the scenes. Reading the notes increased my curiosity and intensified my inspection, corner to corner, edge to edge, over and over. Somewhere along the way there was a spark of recognition. I had been there once before, not to Mt. Desert, but to that place where you can tell yourself you have nothing better to do than to wait and watch, gather in a bunch of seemingly wasted moments till you apprehend THE moment. I wanted to be there again, so I slowly turned page after page, imagining the ascent to the vantage point, thinking how brisk the air must be, how my beard must be getting a bit straggly after several days, how little I am missing revving engines and ringing phones. Thank you my dear friend Mr. Nyiri, for taking me to that place again.

Alan Nyiri combines a sensitivity of light, a keen sense of place and obvious love of nature to produce this marvelous collection of images. In this book the artist explores and expands the panoramic format in the exquisite setting of one of the most beautiful parks in all the world. If you're a fan of panoramic photography, a fan of Mount Desert Island, or are considering a visit to that enchanted island, you'll want this book.

Full disclosure; I'm a friend of Alan's and an admirer of his work.

I became aware of this book by seeing Jack Perkins interviewed on Maine Public Television about it. It was a wonderful interview and he read some of his poems and explained how the book came to be. It has always been a secret hope of mine that I might bump into Jack some place in Maine, but it has not happened yet. The next best thing is to own his book, and then he can talk to you and share his vision of this unique area of our lovely state. His talent is not limited to his high profile experiences in television journalisim for NBC. He is an accomplished photographer and poet and he has a wonderful heart.

Poetry has gone out of fashion in our obsession with things that take no work and require no thought. Recently my wife and I hosted a dinner in Washington at which Jack spoke. He read from and commented on his poems. For an old broadcast journalist to attempt something like this before an audience of other, mostly cynical journalists was very brave, indeed. But Jack brought it off in a way that had people listening respectfully and then responding enthusiastically. Many promised to immediately purchase their own copies. Whatever relationship you may or may not have with Maine, "Acadia" will do something for your heart that few other contemporary books can do. I highly recommend it as a gift, or for your own consumption and enjoyment. I guarantee you will not be disappointed.

This book was the greatest book I've ever read, and I recommend it to everyone. Its about two cousins, Molly and Caleb. They consider themselves "double first cousins" because Mollys mom and Calebs dad were brother and sister, and Calebs mom and Molly's dad were brother and sister. They find they are attracted to each other, but know that their love can never be. The also are haunted by a ghoast named Evaline Bloodsworth, whoose story is similiar to their own.

I read this book and it was phenomenal. I loved it! The tradgedy of loving someone so much, yet knowing that it could never be. The story was great, but it was like two stories in one book. I loved it, along with another book by the Author, Summer endings

The book contains many illustrations and information on goalie stars of the early 90's. My son seems to find the information fascinating.

I read this book about a year ago and its a great book. I never thought that I would learn about being on the Ice and yet having fun at the same time. Great book for any child that wants to be a hockey player

One of the most helpful darkroom as well as general photographic guides that I have found. The best thing about it is that it informs you on all the major brands on the market i.e. Kodak, Fuji, Agfa, Ilford, etc. unlike guides published by the companies themselves who of course only advise you about their products. As a consumer you need to know about all of them. I have been waiting for an update for a few years now, which is what I hoped to find when I looked it up in Amazon. The guide is still helpful but there are many new products since 1993.

This book is invaluable for the darkroom worker, both amateur and pro. It lists properties and develop times of all films, describes printing papers in depth and gives information on every kind of photo chemical you ever wanted to use but were afraid to buy. I only wish it were updated to include newer films and papers, but it's still the handiest book I own.

This is a fine beginners guide to identifying the tracks you might find while hiking in New England, whether you're in an urban area or on a wilderness hike. While not comprehensive, you will find the more common animals from your environment -- 34 mammals (including mice, squirrels, rabbits, snakes, skunks, frogs and toads, fox, coyote, porcupine, raccoon, deer, moose and bear) and 9 birds (including grouse, crow, duck, owl, heron and eagle).

The book begins with a preface of enouragement followed by an introduction on how to use the book and where/how to look for tracks, continues with 2-page species entries, and concludes with a short suggested reading list and an index.

Entries are ordered roughly by size, and a 5-inch ruler is printed on the back cover. Each entry has a couple of descriptive paragraphs on the lefthand page and b&w line drawings of typical tracks on the right.

This little book is surprisingly informative and quite compact -- a perfect introductory book for kids or adults who are interested in the wildlife around them.

I use this book everytime I go hikin

This book is NOT out of stock, as it has been reprinted in 1988 and remains avaliable from Whalesback Books. For orders, call 202/333-2182.

This is a reprint of a book originally published in the 1930s, which describes with great sophistication the architecture of the many 18th century homes that dot the Piscataqua River valley, primarily in Portsmouth. At the time it was written, many of these homes were still occupied by descendants of the original owners, whereas now they are owned by non-profit organizations and are open to the public. It is enormously rewarding to compare the black and white pictures in the book with the houses as they are today. It also contains an introductory essay that gives a superb explanation of the evolution of domestic architecture from America's earliest settlements through the 18th century. As the book explains, Portsmouth, along with Newburyport, Annapolis, and Charleston, are unique among historic American cities because they prospered in the 18th century only to decline thereafter, thereby allowing their wonderful examples of Georgian and Federal/Adam architecture to be preserved. By way of contrast, Boston, New York, and Philadelphia grew so rapidly in the 19th century that most of their examples of this type of home were lost to the wrecker's ball.

The Art of Shelling is loaded with interesting facts about shells and other beach collectibles. It provides detailed information on how and where to find shells at twenty-six locations in six East Coast states. I truly found this to be a great companion on my vacations at the beaches mentioned...as I found shells right where the book said I would!

The Art of Shelling is loaded with interesting facts about shells and other beach collectibles. It provides detailed information on how and where to find shells at twenty-six locations in six East Coast states. I truly found this to be a great companion on my vacations at the beaches mentioned...as I found shells right where the book said I would!

I'm not even qualified to be from "away", as an occasional guest of an official "away" resident of Vinalhaven, Maine. But Phil's stories have added greatly to my appreciation of this special island, its people and institutions. I read his hilarious story about an improbable romance at the island dump shortly after returning from there, carefully recycling, cramming my small $1.50 bag of garbage and checking out the free clothes in the "bus".

Unless you are lucky enough to be invited by a resident, you'll probably spend the night in Phil's tiny but comfortable motel, right in the heart of town and surrounded by the best lobster and crab you'll ever eat.

Because the stories were written for several different outlets, the styles and length vary, and there are a few tiny clunkers, but there are also some brilliant phrases that make it all worthwhile. Commenting on some island septuagenarians that insist on golfing at least once per month year-round, he said that it was remarkable, "considering the latitude of the course and the longitude of the participants."

Great fun. Just don't get too absorbed and miss the last ferry!

This is a wonderful Yankee counterpart to Minnesota's Lake Wobegone! Life on a small island in the Penobscot Bay has its charms and challenges. Crossman's vignettes are humorous, insightful and poignant. A fun read.

The writers do an excellent job of reminding the reader of why we like sports. In this Post-Mitchell Report Era, it's nice to see examples of heros who aren't so driven by personal glory at the expense of others. Overall, a nice read.

I think Jack Walsh, and Marshall Cook have captured the heart and soul of Baseball's greatest players. Baseball Good Guys is a book that will inspire the reader to learn more of the Character and Integrity of these players. The statistics are there, but their ability to overcome adversity, personal problems, prejudice and more, will inform the readers of the real skills of these players.

Be forewarned, some of the pages come to life, in such a way that splinters (possibly from the bats) seem to leap into your eyes.

Good book, should be a must read for school athletes and those of us who lived during some of those years.