Maine Books

I read this book because sometimes it's fun to jump into and old book (1902). I guess I was curious to see what people were reading at the turn of the last century. Also, I was interested in what life was like in rural New England communities in days of yore. This tale is a bit of a Horatio Alger story. He starts in Vermont on the old farm and moves to Providence eventually then Maine then Ike dissappears and what happens to him? Well, I wouldn't want to ruin it for you...

The fun part was the language used by the author. It really wasn't easy to read until you got the hang of it. Mr McFaul really did a great job with the Yankee and Irish immigrant vernacular. Never read anything quite like it before really. And frankly it's not always easy to understand what people are saying but you usually get the gist most of the time.

The tale itself has been told over and over, so i gave it 4 stars but the language was well worth it. I managed to read it pretty quickly, so it held my attention. I recommend it if you are interested in this time period and or this region. I guess I thought it was going to be funnier too. The beginning is pretty funny, but then it has a more earnest tone as it goes along. I enjoyed it though.

This book is a great guide to finding publicly accessible Indian mound sites in the Atlantic Coast states. This is the first of 5 guides (they've only done one other which was recently been revised and expanded). Be nice if this one is revised as well. Another book on on Indian Mound sites in Florida list a lot of sites this one doesn't. However, this book has a good introductory section on ancient native american cultures, something hard to find.

A five-page introductory biography of Henry David Thoreau is followed by the main feature: 14 double-page spreads representing Thoreau's trips to Maine. For the sake of this account, several excursions have been combined into one encompassing experience. We travel along as Henry and his companions paddle and portage their canoes through the wilderness. We share in their impressions of moose and the other wildlife they encounter. (The real-life hunting and killing of the moose has been thoughtfully deleted from this re-telling.) Henry's ultimate goal of climbing to the top of Mount Katahdin is realized by the end of the narrative.

Kiesler's paintings and sketches accompany well the text that Murphy has created from Thoreau's writing. This version is laid out in picture book style and is just as accessible for adults as it is for children. Consider it "The Maine Woods," illustrated and abridged.

It is sort of strange to buy a book on a whim and find it peopled by folks you know and having pictures of where you live. Living on an island myself, I bought it for its title. I am from Away, but I have lived on this island more than half my life. I can say from experience that this book is quite accurate and gives a good picture of island life. Put it together with "The Lobster Coast" by Colin Woodard, and you have a very complete picture. I present this review with a plea not to move to an island unless you have children who will go to school here.

The crisp blue waters that fill the pale seaweed laden rocks of the Maine coast are simply breathtaking. This book is yet another example of how words just can't do justice. The area covered in this title is some of the hardest to write about without relying on amazing facts of the historical importance of the Maine coastline, yet the author does an outstanding job of putting the historical, artistic and wildlife qualities into context. As a guide for the area and for pleasure reading, this book has exemplary qualities to keep you interested from front cover to the last page. The one shortfall that I found was there wasn't enough of it, which is probably good since the point of the book is for you get out and see this "Gods Country" for yourself! Overall I can completely recommend this book if you are a "Mainiac," or just on vacation in this part of the world (believe me you'll feel like you're out of the USA). Read it, love it, put it down and experience it !

I received the Jenny trilogy for Christmas one year because I am a devoted "Mainer", spending part of each summer there. These books evoke all that I love about Maine and Scotland. They are rich in the history, customs and peoples of the early 19th century. Elizabeth Olgivie is a wonderful storyteller who takes us through the lives of Jenny and Alick Glenroy from their first meetings in the highlands of Scotland through their "courtship" and marriage. Their story is warm and loving, romantic and exciting, heartbreaking and heart-lifting, and a throughly rewarding read. I only wish she would write a fourth book so we could follow Jenny and Alick's children into adulthood. While her dialogue can be a little confusing at times, her characterizations are wonderful as is her insight into the hearts and minds of each character. The descriptions of the land and the sea, the fog on the ocean , the rockbound coast of Maine are delicious. I started the first book on a Friday and had finished all three by following Wednesday. Her works reminds me of other favorite authors such as Maeve Binchy or the incomparable Norah Lofts. I recommend them highly.

Just back from vacation -- have spent past over thirty years summering in Georgetown, ME -- in small cottage at the mouth of the Kennebec (across from Gilbert Head and Fort Popham) and can't believe I have only now discovered Coffin's beautiful (and often times entertaining -- that's right -- history can be fun!) narrative. Had good fortune of reading first print edition -- we're talking dog-eared, yellowed, thick pages, but am sure the paperback edition will be as fine a read (minus the tactile joy!). From lumbering to fishing, from the Abenakis to the shipbuilders, from folklore to farming and hunting, to . . . you name it -- anything you can imagine occuring along the banks of a great river and beyond to faraway places like the W. Indies can be found here -- ENJOY, but don't wait 30 years to do so!

"Letters from Maine" is a gorgeous collection of meditations on nature, love, and various internal truths. Sometimes celebratory and passionate and sometimes introspective and melancholy, these poems flower in the mind and leave the reader blissful. May Sarton is more known for her fiction, but certainly her poetry is worthy of similar attention.

Mr. Barrett, the author, was both a contemporary and strong partisan of his subject. His book is a product of its time, 1865. Nonetheless, it contains many interesting passages about a number of subjects still argued over. As examples, General McCellan is reported on in detail (and excoriated) and the war powers of a president under the U.S. Constitution are discussed in length, given the pointed criticism President Lincoln received for suspending the writ of habeas corpus.

I greatly enjoyed the full text that is often provided of President Lincoln's statements and addresses.

While pages on the detail of certain battles will be wearying for the modern reader, this book should be owned and read by every serious student of Abraham Lincoln.

People who love lighthouses know that the Maine coast is dotted with lighthouses and that this portion of New England is a lighthouse lover's paradise. LIGHTHOUSES AND LIFE SAVING ALONG THE MAINE AND NEW HAMPSHIRE COAST is a must for East Coast lighthouse lovers. The book is similar to Claflin's other books on lighthouses and life saving in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. It is filled with older photographs of the places and people involved in this way of life. Readers who have visited the lighthouses and life saving stations of Maine in recent years will be amazed at how remote some of these locations once were. The small commentaries that follow many of the pictures helps create a sense of history of these bygone days. This book helps recreate the romantic appeal of the days when lighthouses and life saving stations were in their glory, but a reader will also get a sense of the dangers and sacrifice involved on the part of those who dedicated their lives to this service.