Articles
When Big Boys Camp
A kid dreams of what life could hold, in a world full of possibility, and what’s that kid say? Well, a kid of the male gender might speculate, “When I’m a big boy, I’ll…” And that way of imagining and fantasizing possibility is what the group who have dubbed themselves the Big Boys seem to
A Moose on the Loose Writes Home
“Two days ago a moose was seen on the island. It swam towards Greens Island when last seen!” — The Wind, Vinalhaven, July 20, 2006 Dear Mother, Forgive my tardiness in writing. You have been in my thoughts often, though you understandably might not think that the case. All you knew was that I suddenly
The Book of the Dead
New York: Warner Books, 2006. Hardcover, $25.95 Murder, Mystery and Mayhem Preston (who has a home in Round Pond, Maine) and Child are joint authors of a number of crime mystery books, and The Book of the Dead is the latest in their series featuring the Pendergast brothers, Aloysius and Diogenes. This book, the sequel
“I like to just let people say their thing” Islanders author reflects on the offshore life
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
What’s Left Lobster
When last reported on, lobsterman Dickie Hildings of Vinalhaven was notable for several reasons: he’d been Vinalhaven’s “Mr.May” in the 2001 Bachelor Lobstermen calendar; he had a premier reputation for lobstering and he was winning a lot of boat races up and down the coast. All of that, in the competitive world of fishermen, counts
A Man of Stone
Sculptor William Lasansky’s home and studio are right where you might expect them to be on Vinalhaven: perched on the edge of a quarry, up the street from a cemetery full of carved monuments and a stone’s throw from the rocky shoreline. That he is an artist working with granite is no surprise. He has
When the Island is the Star of the Show
Entertainment is a regular feature at the Smith Hokansen Auditorium in the Vinalhaven School. Nationally known musical acts have appeared, and presentations with lots of local appeal. A movie premiere on July 16, however, had a turnout that surprised everyone. Originally only one showing had been scheduled for “The Islander,” filmed last year on Vinalhaven.
ADVICE ALERT: Don’t Listen to What the So-called Experts Tell You!
Regular readers of my column, “Tina’s Tantalizing Travel Tips,” know that I am always looking out for you, my valued readership. Your tenacious advisor not only tackles all kinds of situations on your behalf, but also reads insatiably what other self-described travel experts have to say in their effort to be “helpful.” This month I
Consider the Lobster and Other Essays
Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 2006 352 pp, hardcover, $25.95 “A deliberate collision, joyful and lucrative and loud.” Ten essays comprise this newest collection of David Foster Wallace’s nonfiction musings, originally published in periodicals including Harper’s, Rolling Stone, Atlantic Monthly and Village Voice. This entertaining book might be one to pack for time on a
Mud Season
Regular readers of Vinalhaven’s weekly paper, The Wind, are avidly following the ad campaigns that broke out this winter between two competitor purveyors on the island. Island Spirits had enjoyed a niche all to itself, both in clever ad copy and in the sale of gourmet specialties. But Fishermen’s Friend has entered the fray, not