I would love some recommendations of books that really evoke the local character in New England, especially the coast of Maine. I am especially interested in fiction, both classic and current, but if a non-fiction book is really special, bring it on!

Thanks to all.

I nominate Henry Beston's Outermost House re:Cape Cod -- wish I knew of a comparable book about the Maine coast.

I hope others who love Maine will come up with a couple of fiction authors/books for you (I'm drawing a blank today), but for me, the New England/Maine I loved as a child is really vivid in the child's books by Robert McClosky (Make Way for Ducklings) -- notably Blueberries for Sal and One Morning in Maine. These are pretty old-fashioned and, as I said, are for children, but the atmosphere is exactly right.

Robin, just so you understand -- what I was suggesting was that you just leaf through those books at a library or in a bookstore (if you are on the West Coast, they probably wouldn't be in stores there, though). The illustrations are wonderful.

Pris-- Thanks for the clarification, but the truth is I love children's books, so if they struck me the way apparently strike you, I probably would be willing to buy them! Thanks

http://www.friend.ly.net/scoop/biogr...closkeyrobert/

A book I have been wanting to read is Stern Men by Elizabeth Gilbert (?) - about lobstermen on the coast of Maine. It's gotten good reviews. I also just finished reading Ahab's Wife, which is about Nantucket and a great read.

I second Pris's McClosky recommendation - I LOVED the book Blueberries for Sal when I was little! Outermost House is another good call.

Pris, This is "away from topic" but thanks for those nice memories of Robert McCloskey's books. As an uprooted New Englander living and raising our two youngsters in Dallas, I read the three you mentioned to both kids over and over. We *all* loved them.

That was 25 years ago, more or less, and this morning as I went out to my car, our resident family of ducks, Mom and 8 ducklings now almost full sized, waddled out into the parking lot picking up bits of something or other. The sentence that went through my mind when I saw them? "Make Way for Ducklings"! gt;

I would recommend reading "Hotel New Hampshire" by Jon Irving. Although only about 3/4 of it takes place on the east coast, it just gives you a great feel for the old school east coast life, particularly Maine.

Moby Dick--whaling history; many Steven Kings; the Crucible.

Thanks to all. Any other ideas?

my favorite, Miss Rumphius, by Barbara Cooney.

Here's another children's book, but I'm currently reading it to my son, and it's been so interesting that I've read ahead to the end: Calico Bush, by Rachel Field. It's a book for young teens (though my 6-year-old likes it) about a girl who is bound as an indentured servant to a family that moves to Maine, just south of Mount Desert Island. It takes place in the mid 1700s.

Of course all the Robert McCloskey books, as well as "Going Lobstering," which has great pictures and answers any question you might have about how lobsters are caught.

If you are looking for fiction that takes place in Maine/New England any of Anita Shreves novels take place in that area- Fortunes Rock depicts coastal Maine late 1800's and The Weight of Water is another about sailing off of Maine. Very different than other suggestions yet you may enjoy! Have fun.

You might take a look at More than You Know by Beth Gutcheon - a slightly creepy tale that takes place on the Maine coast - I thought she did a good job of depicting the area. Cider House Rules by Irving takes place in Maine and nothing beats Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton for describing winter bleakness in the Berkshires. (If Wharton appeals to you, her book called Summer is sort of a companion to Ethan Frome) Cant remember the author, but The Beans of Egypt, Maine gives you a good look at the non-tourist side of the scene. Enjoy.

The Perfect Storm by Junger

Personally, I would avoid Ethan Frome at all costs-- especially before a vacation. But Cider House Rules is a wonderful suggestion. I think I'd choose that over Hotel New Hampshire (though HNH was certainly more acclaimed). I would skip the movie. I don't care if Irving had a hand in the screenplay. It didn't do his novel justice.
I'll try to think of more, but would you consider picking up some of Robert Frost's poetry?
Mila

This is a bit off topic, but having suggested Ethan Frome and reading Mila's response I had to laugh. A few years ago, my husband, teenage son and I were "stranded" on a little whole island resort in the Grenadines for two weeks in July....about one week too many and so hot and buggy we hardly left our (non-airconditioned) rooms. The resort had a small library and one of us grabbed a copy of Ethan Frome and the long, heartbreaking descriptions of the frigid, unforgiving winter was so appealing that we all read it and then spent a lot of time re-reading it aloud to one another. Now, whenever I think of the Caribbean, I have this weird image of scary old Ethan lurking behind the palm trees!

Thanks for more ideas.

Ellie, I have a vision of all of you in the muggy Caribbean passing that book around-- that's classic!

Jon, I have read the Perfect Storm and enjoyed it. Now I just have to keep my mother from reading it, as the main purpose for this vacation is to sail on the Atlantic coast! I don't want to give her any ideas...

Not much of an "adult" novel, but have loved "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" since I was a young girl. You get a little glimpse of the simple life in early New England.

You've had great suggestions here. For adult fiction, the John Irving suggestions are right on--in fact, most of his books take place at least partially in New Hampshire.

For coastal Maine, I also recommend Colony, by Anne Rivers Siddons. It's pretty beachy, if you know what I mean, but it certainly evokes a sense of place, with its multi-generation tale of a Maine summer colony.

There is certainly a trove of great children's literature set in New England, and since you enjoy children's books, I'll expand on that.

I'm thrilled to see so many people recommending Robert McCloskey's timeless classics; they were a big part of my childhood because my grandparents knew him as a friend (and my grandfather was the art director for children's books at his publisher). In addition to those previously mentioned, Time of Wonder also specifically features the coast of Maine.

For Massachussetts, I also red and reread The Witch of Blackbird Pond as a youngster (historical fiction about a teenager accused of witchcraft). Jane Langton's Concord books (The Diamond in the Window, the Swing in the Summerhouse [which is out of print, but could be found at the library], and The Fledgling) are wonderful children's fantasy novels that take place on Walden Pond and incorporate reflections on Thoreau; again, a great sense of place. For the same area, of course you can't beat Louisa May Alcott's classics--Little Women, Little Men, and Jo's Boys.

Jane Langton also has a lot of mysteries for adults set in New England, but I haven't read them.