Serendipity seems to be at the core of Virginia Thorndike’s book Islanders. She felt fortunate to be the person asked to author it, as she explained to me in a recent interview. When Down East Books pitched the idea of describing Maine’s island residents, her immediate response was: “You betcha.” She told me, “Ever since I was a kid, summering on Islesboro, I’ve loved islands and been intrigued to understand what made them different from other places.” In setting out to document “real life on the Maine islands” (the book’s subtitle), she let serendipity guide her research. “I started with people I already knew, either personally or from earlier books, and then by word of mouth,” she explained. “Often it was strictly happenstance that led me to someone in particular.” Thorndike adds, “When I was aware of a perspective that hadn’t been voiced, I tracked someone down to represent it.”
She listened to people’s stories and worked with what they gave her. “I like to just let people say their thing, and quote them the best I can…” Thorndike didn’t have a grocery list of different kinds of people to find, questions to ask, or points to prove or disprove. She editorializes only a bit; occasionally a personal comment indicates her own take on something or adds a larger context, but the book seems written to put in print some things islanders say about their lives when given a chance. Obviously, in visiting islands and talking to those comfortable sharing details about their lives, Thorndike is hearing from people for whom that choice is working, even if not always perfectly. That serves, de facto, to give the book its bias. This is a book describing islanders who are for the most part happy and successful where they live. They have figured out how to make the peculiarities of island life work.
If you find yourself fantasizing about this way of life, thinking of taking the plunge to live offshore, Islanders could be a helpful read. Asked to generalize about what quality people most have in common who are happy living on an island, Thorndike says, “The main theme that kept coming back was that you’d better be pretty comfortable in your own skin to make a go of it on an island.”
She admits to “giving some islands short shrift on some issues.” She doesn’t completely avoid mentioning negatives — the kinds of things people struggle with, dislike, or eventually leave because of — but those aspects are minimally considered. Thorndike’s interviewees as a group are pretty upbeat: energetic, can-do and talented. They’re the kind of people who might do well wherever they live. So, they’re thriving on islands. Does that mean they like life ramped up a bit, spiced with some challenges?
If you’re the kind of person who likes to think of life as somewhat adventurous, living on a Maine island may work for you. However, the challenge isn’t just living at a distance or going without. There are important logistics for maintaining a connection with the mainland (“America” is how many islanders refer to it, implying a sense of separation, no matter how much). And it helps to relinquish needing a certain predictability and accessibility to things. If something significant for you falls into a kind of “special need” category, however, that may become the most serious challenge. As one might guess, whatever can be hard to maintain on the mainland is many times harder on an island. Wheelchair access? Specialized health services? Accommodations for learning differences in school? Opportunities for extracurricular activities for young people? Affordable housing? Cultural, racial, socioeconomic and religious diversity? Some of these are hard to find even on a sizeable island like Vinalhaven, with its number of people and resources.
Thorndike hopes that for people considering a move, her book “might actually help.” She regrets that maps couldn’t be included, but otherwise feels her book covers island issues “in a manner I haven’t seen elsewhere.” In concluding our conversation, I asked her how those people she writes about felt, seeing themselves in print. She answered, “I can say that it’s gotten a pretty nearly universally favorable reception, as far as anyone has told me, and I find that personally very rewarding.” Similarly, her “Author’s Note” at the beginning of Islanders reflects, “All have my tremendous respect and my appreciation for talking with me. The islands are wonderful physical places, to be sure, but without their people, they’d be just rocks surrounded by water.”
Islanders: Real Life on the Maine Islands by Virginia Thorndike (Down East Books, 2005)
Tina Cohen writes on Vinalhaven.