December began with the first big snowfall on the lodge in New Brunswick, signifying the beginning of winter and several months of modified dormancy in the Maritimes. We think it sounds like a great opportunity to curl up in front of the fire with a good book and, as such, are continuing on with our winter reading list and review.
This week we’re reviewing a book recommended by Linda Gaston, Executive Director of the Atlantic Salmon Museum in Doaktown, New Brunswick.
“The Americans are Coming” by Herb Curtis, a well known writer in the Miramichi River Valley, now includes an afterward by David Adams Richards. The flair of “good ole river tales,” which have been passed down from generation to generation, sets a lively backdrop for showcasing New Brunswick and its unique culture.
Synopsis:
An invasion? For teenagers Dryfly Ramsey and Shadrack Nash, poor and ignorant in the world's terms but rich in the lore of the magical Miramichi, the annual influx of American anglers, with their money, fishing gear, and thirst for salmon seems like one, and it sets the stage for action. A cast of quirky, unforgettable characters - Nutbeam, a large-nosed, floppy-eared hermit; Shirley, Brennan Siding's toothless postmistress and Ramsey family matriarch; and Buck, who appears once a year to sire another child - conspire to capture the imagination in Herb Curtis's now classic novel. And what of the Whooper, that mystical beast whose cries result in amazingly tall tales? In The Americans are Coming, the voices of Brennan Siding ring out in the rich vernacular of New Brunswick's Miramichi region, a world immersed in myth, folklore, and the sulpherous belch of a nearby pulp mill, and where ghosts and demons are as real as the Lone Ranger or the spring run of gaspereaux.
About the Author:
Herb Curtis was nominated for the Stephen Leacock Award for his collection of humourous stories, Luther Corhern's Salmon Camp Chronicles. The Americans Are Coming is the first novel in his acclaimed Brennan Siding trilogy. He has won the Thomas Head Raddall Prize for fiction and been shortlisted for the Commonwealth Prize (Canada and the Caribbean). Although born near the Dungarvon River, he now lives in Fredericton.
What do you think? We'd love to hear your insight into this, or any other books, we're including on our winter reading list. Leave us a comment here or on the Notes section of our Facebook page.
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