2 comments about Haunted Inns of New England.

1. Being from a town in New England with a large number of the featured haunted inns, I was excited to read this book. I was even married at one and my grandmother worked at another in the 1930s. I did learn a few things about the history of the inns, which was great. Unfortunately, the writing was... off. I laughed out loud at several bits (one innkeeper had a "never-ending seven year dispute" with a zoning board) and cringed at others, especially the parts that seemed to kowtow to every inns' staff. It read like a school project rather than an actual professional finished glossy product. The book really could have done with an editing overhaul to make the stories more easily appreciated.



2. If you enjoy New England history and like a good bone-chilling fright in the dark, you will enjoy this book. Mark invites you along on his journey of open-minded discovery, and his detailed descriptions of the locations will make you feel as though you are walking through the front door along with him.
   
   The stories highlight the history and hauntings of many New England Inns, most not widely known and off the beaten path (although the well-worn Lizzie Borden surfaces yet again; perhaps interesting to those not from New England). The first-hand interviews are with contemporary people at real locations, and in almost all cases the Inn's name, town, and telephone number are included. Many photographs are included as well.
   
   I picked this up while staying at the Daniel Webster Inn, not knowing what to expect, and was pleasantly surprised. I believe you will find this an easy, delightful read. Mark's prose is a bit sugary, but to his credit the stories are told totally without embellishment, allowing the readers to judge the validity of the stories for themselves.
   
   Be sure to read this one on a dark, stormy night, curled up in front of a roaring fire!

3 comments about Nantucket Ghosts.

1. I bought this book while vacationing on Nantucket in hopes for a good scare. Written by a children's book author, I was expecting the scares to be watered-down and the fantasy to be fluffed up. This was not the case. The stories are well-written and captivating. The author includes first-hand accounts from witnesses and has managed to round-up some really bizarre and extremely creepy ghost stories.



2. The people you will meet in these accounts are lovely people. People you'd want to have over for dinner, or ask to recommend a book to you. People you might have sit your dog or borrow a cup of sugar from. And they have some very scary things to say. You may or may not believe in ghosts when you begin this book, but after finishing it, you'll have to wonder. Not recommended for bedtime reading!



3. This book was a page-turner right from the beginning. This is quite simply one of the best ghost story collections I have ever read, especially for one that is concerned with such a concise regional area. The stories are well varied, the writing is snappy and moves right along, and the storytellers keep nicely to the point. There's no embellished fluff or rehashing of old legends here. ALL of these stories are first-hand accounts witnessed by contemporary people. Some of these tales will make you smile, some will make you chuckle, and others will quite effectivley put a lead ball in the pit of your stomach.
   
   The author has nicely captured the essence of Nantucket by letting the people describe their heritage for themselves. Her detailed descriptions of the architecture bring alive these places for you. Nantucket is one of those places you'll never forget once you have been there, and these candid people will help show you why. In addition to all the local history and genealogy, doors open and close, sturdy latches won't stay shut, lights turn on and off, voices of all types haunt present day residents, ghostly footsteps abound, and much more! I was especially intrigued by the lady whose entire family of ancestors seems to be staying on in her house with her.
   
   Having grown up in a Massachusetts home built in 1788, I can appreciate the value the residents place on preserving their historical and generational traditions. This book will give you a real sense of how these people relate to their island, their homes, and their living history. If you are interested in Nantucket, or just love curling up with a good ghost story or two, this one's for you.

5 comments about Remembering Denny.

1. The book is a whatdunit: what caused an Ivy League golden boy with a million dollar smile to commit suicide at age 55.

   The boy was Denny Hansen. His family was lower middle class and lived in the San Francisco Bay area. At a public high school, he became all-everything. He attended Yale from 1953-57 where he became good friends with the author, Bud Trillin. There, he was a fifties hero: scholar-athlete, a student leader. and all-around good guy. He was a member of swim team, Deke fraternity and the Elizabethan Society. During his senior year, he was tapped by Scroll and Key. He graduated magna cum laude and was admitted to Phi Betta Kappa. Life Magazine published a photo essay about his graduation. He was selected as a Rhodes Scholar and studied two years at Magdalen College at Oxford. He received a master¹s degree from the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton, Not bad for a young man with his background.

   Denny Hansen became Roger D. Hansen. On the career level, he worked briefly in broadcasting, the State Department and at the National Security Council in the Carter administration. He wrote several books on foreign policy that were widely praised. But the Foreign Service rejected his application. Eventually, he was appointed to a chair at the Johns-Hopkins¹ School for Advanced International Studies in Washington. He was a member of the Cosmos Club and the Council on Foreign Relations. On a personal level, Roger never married. He became estranged from his family, his relationships with a few women soured, he gradually alienated his friends from Yale. He became a chronic complainer. He became very depressed. But he always defended right conduct. Near the end of his life, he lived a clandestine gay lifestyle. He bequeathed his pension to his former girl friend, and the remainder of his "huge" estate to Yale.

   What caused Roger to commit suicide in 1991?. His friends and colleagues offer various explanations. During conversations after Roger¹s death, his Yale friends discovered that they did not know Roger and may have never really known Denny. Trillin¹s explanation is that because of ³poisonous template of the fifties², Roger could not accept his sexual orientation. A reader can interpret his explanation as an attack on values of the Fifties. To me, the most persuasive explanation is an application of the backpack analogy. When a boy is born, he is wearing a backpack. Other people put their heroic expectations for him in the backpack. The more the boy succeeds, the more expectations are put in the backpack and the heavier it gets. Eventually, the loan becomes unbearable and the boy reaches a crisis. In Roger¹s case, instead of emptying the backpack, he chose to kill himself. He had a house, but not a home. Remember, the line from a Robert Frost poem, "Death of the Hired Man"., ³Home is the place where, when you have to go there,/ They have to take you in.² Neither Denny nor Roger had a place where they had to take him in.

   The details of the book are fascinating. Trillin describes college life at Yale during the 1950s and the careers of many of Denny¹s classmates and friends.. Of course, Trillin¹s writing is excellent: clear, powerful and sometimes humorous. In a way, the book is a mid-20th Century sequel to Owen Johnson¹s Stover at Yale.

   Trillin suggests that the ³poisonous template of the fifties² was the major cause of Roger¹s death in 1991. But change is not equivalent to progress. Sex does not explain everything. Each reader must decide for himself whether, based on the circumstantial evidence, the template of the Fifties enabled Roger to carry his backpack of expectations for more than 30 years, or whether it was the templates of later decades that poisoned the golden boy from California with the million dollar smile.




2. I am of mixed feelings about this book. Part of me feels sympathetic towards the subject, Roger (Denny) Hansen. It is quite sad to read of his downward spiral which led to his suicide. Hansen seemed like a nice fellow.

   But part of me wonders what all the fuss is all about. Hansen had a lot going for him and he was unable to find happiness despite all that. Many people feel that people are as happy as they want to be and Mr. Hansen simply chose to be in misery.

   Admittedly, some of his problems were external. He had severe back problems much of his life. He also may have been a homosexual, at a pre-Stonewall time.

   Still, other people with the same problems and fewer privileges make a good life for themselves. We all have hardships and Denny let his overcome him.

   Trillin fights with the elitist ideas of an Ivy Leaguer in the 50s. He is one of the few, one of those guaranteed a lofty place in America. Yet I get the feeling that he is somewhat ashamed of it underneath.

   And part of me feels no sympathy for the trials and tribulations of the snots who feel superior to anyone outside their circle. That snobbishness is evident throughout.

   I also wonder why the book was written at all. This is obviously a guilt trip on the part of Trilling who probably (understandably) wonders if there was something he could have done to prevent this suicide. It is certainly no tribute to the man, Trilling confesses at the end of the book that he probably had no idea of what made his friend tick.

   It also makes me wonder why Trillin wrote this book for public consumption. I can understand the voyage Trillin took to learn about his friend. But why release it to the public and why profit from the miseries of his friend. If Trillin gave his royalties from his efforts to some charity, perhaps. But some moral force within Trillin should have seen how crass this book is. Indeed, as I thought of this point, I decided to change my rating of this book from 2 stars to 1 star.




3. This book has haunted me for 10 years now. For Roger Dennis Hansen, there was the terrible pain of being in the closet for as long as he recognized he did not have feelings for girls that the other boys did, and that society said he should. And remember, in those days, you were some kind of monster for having same sex yearnings - take a look at the statistics.
   
   And then there was the most basic indicator of failure, a deeply dysfunctional family life - no support, no love. One tries and tries to carry oneself with those external trophies, with the support of friends, employers and mentors, and that sometimes works for a while. But the basic perception of oneself is cast, and if there is no beaming, loving face in the mirror, no one is there really giving a damn about your welfare, you go as far as you can - sometimes you make it to the end of the road, but sometimes you crash before then. It is hard.
   
   There is a little bit of Denny in a lot of us - I see him in me. I did not have the scholastic glory that this man had, which some of you think should have carried him through to ripe old age, but the similarities remain. This is not a book for ghouls, as Mr. "Jim Burns" opines, nor a treatise on how great Mr. Trillin is, as Mr. "A Reader" states. If anything, Mr. Trillin minces no words in how he failed Denny - I dare any of you to be that truthful about your own failings in your dealings with the humanity around you. A great book that transcends class and race lines, humor and ground floor truth an intoxicating mixture for me.



4. Calvin Trillin's great work 'Remembering Denny' was re-released in 2005. I read the original back in 1993. It has stuck with me ever since then. I found it to be a brilliant look at unfulfilled promise, as embodied by his Yale classmate, Denny Hansen. Trillin also expertly weaves in two other larger themes. First, as he comes to know of Hansen's homosexuality, Trillin discusses the homophobia of the era (they attended Yale in the mid-Fifties) and the ramifications of that on Hansen's path in life post-graduation. The second theme is the changing of America in the 60s and how that sea-change wrong-footed some 'All-American' boys like Hansen, who were unable to adjust accordingly.
   
   I love the brilliant cover of the re-release, depicting a color photo of Hansen and his dazzling smile. It perfectly captures Hansen's then-promising future and why so many were smitten by him.



5. Calvin Trillin starts out writing that anyone who speaks at a funeral wants to speak about himself as much as the deceased. He then goes on to talk about himself and his deceased college friend Denny. Anyone who understands that you never really know anyone entirely and that we all have secrets, great and small, will not learn anything from this book.

No comments about The Good City.

3 comments about Nantucket: The Quite Season.

1. Cary's pictures are always great, I have several of her books. I generally ignore the text as it can detract from the pictures at times. Cary - don't feel like you need someone's quotes....your pictures stand alone!!



2. As a professional photographer and writer, there are a select few who fit the bill of "really great" for me. In this case, there are three photos in this book that make the whole book more than worth while having. Maybe a little heavy on the Christmas photos, but in all a very sensitive and introspective look at one of my favorite islands.



3. This book is everything I expeced it to be....beautiful photos of Nantucket at a season few would experience. Magical about explains it. Just enough words to get you through. The photos say it all. Nice work!

No comments about Maine Places, Maine Faces.

1 comments about Robin Hood (Dover Children's Thrift Classics).

1. I recently bought several kid-oriented versions of the tale of Robin Hood, looking for one that would be right for my 2nd grader. I haven't found one that's right for him to read yet, but this version is excellent for me to read to him. The first one edition I read was the Bullseye "Step into Classics" edition, and this edition is the second children's edition I've read.

   The chapters are short (as is the whole book), but the author takes the time to include the elements of feasting and fighting that mark the older, more adult versions of the tale. The language is more complex than the Bullseye edition, but not by too much, and the language has a bit more of the "Olde England" feel I'm used to without going so far as to use archaic words. There's no smiting of pates here, I'm afraid. I'm torn between missing the archaic style and being glad I don't have to explain every other word to my son.

   Robin Hood comes off as having a nasty temper, which I suppose he always did, but other versions usually have a bit more build-up before he goes wild. In order to keep the pace fast, the author omits some of the process of Robin getting mad, so he often seems a bit mean.

   This book does a bit better than the Bullseye edition as far as telling how the men joined the band, giving better detail on the origin of Robin Hood himself and how Friar Tuck joined the band. It also tells the story of Alan a' Dale with more detail, and gives much better background on Maid Marian and her father. The other members of the band are explained as having been there from the beginning (in this story, an existing band saves Robin from the Sheriff, and Robin comes to lead them.)

   The biggest weakness in this edition is that Prince John is virtually absent from the story, and King Richard never comes back to pardon everyone. There are several bits where the sherrif goes to see "the king," and the king he talks to seems a decent sort of fellow. Without a properly evil ruler, it's harder to understand why the people love Robin Hood so much.

   Overall, I'd say this edition is a good compromise between being comprehensive and remaining accessible to children. I'd estimate it's at about a 3rd-4th grade reading level, but should be fine for reading to children as young as 6.

2 comments about Smithsonian Handbooks: Birds of New England (Smithsonian Handbooks).

1. There are approximately 920 species of birds known to visit North America, and 302 of them are documented visitors to New England. All 302 are covered here, as well as 179 occasional species. This compact yet comprehensive book begins with 28 pages of introduction, including instructions on using the book, identifying birds and field technique.

   Profiles are one page per species, and the quantity and quality of the information on each page is spectacular. Each entry contains the family and species name; the length,wingspan and weight of a typical specimen; plumage, habitat and migration information; and descriptive paragraphs about the species' song, behavior, breeding, nesting, population and conservation as well as a distribution map (with migratory information); and pictorial depictions of the species' flight pattern and nest identification. Also included is a scaled silhouette and at least one color photograph. (More pictures are included if the male/female/adolescents/seasonal plumage differ in appearance.) There are blank spaces to note the date, time and location of a sighting. After these 302 entries, smaller entries describe each of 179 bird species that are considered vagrant or casual visitors to the region, and contain the name, a color picture, a distribution map and the average length of that specimen. Entries are organized taxonomically, beginning with birds that do NOT perch and sing, and continuing with those that DO. The book concludes with a glossary (though nowhere does it define 'altricial' -- meaning born helpless, a word used frequently in the entries), a good index, and acknowledgments, including picture credits.

   I'm an old reference librarian, and I have a shelf full of flawed naturalist guides, so I'm not easily impressed -- but this guide is spectacular. If you have any interest in the birds of New England, this should be the first guide you get.




2. It's probably my own fault but this book is a bit over my head. I just wanted a book to identify birds I might see in my area of NH or New England and this book has lots of birds I am sure I will never come close to seeing! If you are a serious birder and are on the lookout for rare birds stopping by during migration you would like this book, but many of them don't live in New England at all. I guess thats why the title has the word "of" underlined. Now I know. Descriptions are thorough and each bird gets it's own entire page full of information and the birds description sometimes helps more than the picture as some of the pictures are just not that good. There is a little box on each page that lists "similar birds" which helps in identification, but I just wish the pictures were more clear.

3 comments about Foghorn Outdoors New England Camping: The Complete Guide to More Than 800 Tent and RV Campgrounds.

1. We just returned from a trip where we intended to stay at Surry Mountain Camping Area - rated an 8 in "New England Camping". When we arrived there Friday evening we were very surprised at the condition and cleanliness of the "campground". There was trash in several of the sites that looked like it had been there a while, run down trailers and it was clear the campground has not been well maintained for some time. With two small children, we had no choice but to forego our deposit and leave. In fact, we didn't even get out of the car. While I'm sure this is an oversight (had the authors even been to this site?), I can't say that I will be using this book for planning future camping trips.



2. My husband and I planned a 6 hour trip to a campground in Maine. When we arrived there, the campground was someone's backyard and the "silver lake" was down the road and across the street! The so-called sites were muddy spots that were so small we could not get our camper in the them. We pulled out this book and located a campground 12 miles up the mountain that we loved so much we booked for next year. We should have consulted the book in the first place!



3. I have the second edition (1999) and admit that I have used it only a few times so far. While it's unfortunate that a previous reviewer had a bad experience, the authors clearly state in the beginning of the guide that the number ratings indicate scenic beauty of the campground, not overall campground quality: "...ratings are based solely on scenic appeal and do not reflect quality issues such as cleanliness of the camp or the temprament of the management, which can change from day to day." Users of the book would be wise to note this distinction and not blame the authors when a campground fails the cleanliness test.

1 comments about Cape Ann.

1. We first saw Andrew Borsari's work in his gallery on Bearskin Neck in Rockport. His images are striking and artistic; full of dramatic lighting and perfect moments. Most important, they capture the essence of Cape Ann, Massachusetts throughout its diverse moods and changing seasons. We were ecstatic that he has made his photos available in this publication.
   
   He has assembled dozens of his images from Gloucester, Manchester, Essex, and Rockport into a colorfull presentation that is large enough to do justice to the subjects. Many images - like the combined front and back cover of Good Harbor Beach - are panoramas that faithfully convey the splendor of this place. Many feature the places the locals treasure and most tourists never see.
   
   This is a wonderful way to visit or remember this very special place.