p Over four seasons, he describes Maine half a century ago - smelting and rescuing ice houses, moose encounters and indoor ermine, raising mischievous rabbits and conversing with pigs, hunting a legendary football-sized emerald and learning from legendary World War II vets. br He takes readers down through thin ice, and up spires of one-match fires. He lollygags Dead River and confronts hair-raising disorientation out on the open sea. He rolls from distance running to downhill skiing, comedy to calamity, whimsy to courage with a fluid pen. Gratitude pervades this volume. Light shines from each essay. Along the way, bits of illumination, encouragement, humor and reflection paint a bigger picture. Like a pointillist, he dabs the canvas gently, turning discrete dots into a cogent, uplifting whole. The impression left is redeeming, the celebration of self-reliance and interdependence, together the essence of all Maine towns. He reminds readers of timeless contentment in nature and human c