The Sea was our Village by Miles Smeeton

I wrote a review of Jonathan Raban's "Passage to Juneau" last week and I've already followed up on one of his reading recommendations. Early in the book Jonathan purposefully sails past a tiny cove on Salt Spring Island named Musgrave Landing. Since my own Mother was raised on Salt Spring Island, British Columbia, I immediately perked to attention.

It turns out he was investigating the old farm of Miles and Beryl Smeeton and the cove where they anchored their yacht, Tzu Hang. Miles wrote several books about their yachting adventures that Jonathan keeps in his library aboard his sail boat. One of the books mentioned was "The Sea Was Our Village." In answer to my query King County Library Systems responded that they did indeed have a copy of this book at their Vashon Island branch and in due time the book was sent to my own branch for pick up by yours truly.

I just finished it this afternoon. What a page turner! In a fortunate turn of events the first book KCLS could get their hands on for me is also the book that chronicles the Smeeton's very first voyages. Even though the couple had zero sailing experience and minimal boating experience they also apparently had enough gumption for twenty normal mortals. Their plan, if you can believe it, was to fly to their native England, buy a boat and then sail it back to Salt Spring Island via the Panama Canal. My husband and I have been sailing a few years and I would never consider doing something like this in a million years.

The book captures my imagination immediately because of the way Miles describes their search for a boat. My husband and I occasionally like to go to boat shows or shop online for them and it is always very personal for us. It was also so for the Smeetons. The boat had to speak to them on some level and when they saw Tzu Hang they fell immediately in love. It turns out to have been a match made in heaven as the big boat eventually transported them all across our oceans.

From my research this book does not have the drama of some of their later voyages. It lacks in incredibly horrible things happening to them but that doesn't mean it doesn't open a window of adventure that is wonderful to look through. The title of the book reflects the many people they met during their sail. I have witnessed the camaraderie that is often apparent among boat people, although sail and motor tend to go their own way, but what I have witnessed is nothing in comparison to what it used to be. Fellow sailors and harbour dwellers went out of their way to meet and greet the Smeetons.

As a reader it is great to be in a front row seat as the Smeetons approach the Hawaiian Islands of the 1950's. Since I was just there a month ago, I can assure you that it has changed dramatically from the lightly inhabited Islands of the past. They were met by natives in original boats going out fishing and the town of Lahaina was small and cute, complete with the still standing Banyan tree, and in Miles opinion, somewhat of a declining village due to the end of the whaling trade. My husband and I were despairing of how touristy it has gotten just since the late 80's. The Smeeton's would be shocked at what has become of Lahaina except for the still beautiful Banyan tree.

The Smeeton's are adventurous almost to a fault. From climbing mountains without trails, circumventing islands, and swimming to underground caves Miles, Beryl and Clio do it all. In the course of their travels they meet sailors like themselves, fisherman, and natives all of whom enrich their travel experience and our reading experience. This book is an adventurous tale told by the crusty adventurer himself. Truly a wonderful read and I can't wait to try another. Next: "Once is Enough."

Clementine Paddleford a Pioneer of Food Writing

I just finished reading "Hometown Appetites: The Story of Clementine Paddleford, the Forgotten Food Writer Who Chronicled How America Ate" by Kelly Alexander and Cynthia Harris. The story started as an article for Saveur magazine with the same title and won a James Beard award for journalism. This along with the encouragement of friends and colleagues are what motivated Alexander and Harris to turn the article into a book.

Alexander had been a food writer for many years and was a highly placed Editor at Saveur. Harris on the other hand was a Kansas State archivist who had spent many thankless months going through Clementine Paddleford's extensive papers that had been rotting at the Dept. of Special Collections at Kansas State University. Between the two of them they manage to bring back to life this amazing, and trailblazing food writer.

Paddleford wrote for the New York Herald as food editor from 1936 to 1966. She was best known though for her weekly column in This Week magazine which was a Sunday supplement that was distributed all over the country. Her national exposure gained her fame and allowed her to travel the country as a well-respected food writer. Clementine was a bold traveller and that included visiting a nuclear submarine where she reported on what the sailors ate on the USS Shipjack. I'd like to see Rachel Ray do that!

I enjoyed the early chapters of the book where Alexander and Harris write about her childhood with her Mother Jennie. If you are like me then you will find a lot to admire in Jennie Paddleford's world. A great anecdote in the book recalls how her father insisted on building the hog run within eye shot of their big front porch. Unable to dissuade him Jennie proceeds to dig up sod, turn soil, and plant an enormous hedge of lilacs between her porch and the hogs. She then says to Clementine; "Never grow a wishbone, daughter, where your backbone ought to be." Now those are some words to live by. In memory of Clementine and her Mother Jennie here is one of Jennie's favorite recipes.

JENNIE PADDLEFORD'S STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE

3 cups all purpose flour
5 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp salt
1 cup sugar, plus more to taste
1/2 cup plus 2 T cold butter, cut into small pieces
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup whole milk
3 quarts fresh strawberries from the fields
1 pint whipping cream

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Sift together flour, baking powder, nutmeg, salt, and 1/2 cup of the sugar into a large bowl. Combine with the 1/2 cup butter in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal with lumps the size of small peas. Transfer dough to bowl. Make a well and add to it the egg and milk. Word dough very gently with fingertips or pastry spatula; knead until it just holds together, about 10 seconds. Dots of butter should be visible; do not overwork dough. Generously flour work surface, then roll dough out to form two circles that are 1/2 inch thick and 8 to 10 inches in diameter. Wrap the disks tightly and chill.

Set aside 16 of the best looking berries. Hull the rest, then halve and place in a bowl with the remaining 1/2 cup sugar or more, depending on the sweetness and ripeness of the fruit. Let strawberries macerate for at least 15 minutes but no more than 45 minutes.

Remove dough disks from refrigerator. On 2 ungreased sheet pans, bake dough rounds 12 to 15 minutes, until golden on the outside and just cooked through in the center. Remove from oven and cool 10 to 15 minutes.

Slather the remaining 2 T of butter evenly on each disk. Transfer large disk to a plate that will accommodate it and the juicy berries running off it. Pile macerated berries on top and then cover with the other disk. Garnish with reserved whole berries and serve with whipped cream if desired. Yield: 8 servings.

Vanity Fair's March Issue is Great

I used to work in the magazine business and I still receive a passel of subscriptions from Conde Nast. I have been watching as successful magazine's have become smaller and smaller due to lack of advertising. It is sad and I suspect we are going to see some titles disappear in the near future. I just hope it's not any of the good one's like Vanity Fair.

Vanity Fair was originally published in the United States in 1914. It celebrated the lives of the rich and famous. During the depression years a magazine devoted to such frivolous topics did not do well and the magazine finally closed it's doors in 1936 just 7 years after the stock market crash. Then in 1984 the magazine was resurrected and once again focused on the rich and famous in the era of Reagan.

The success of this magazine, in my opinion, lies not completely within its subject matter but with its plethora of gifted writers and photographers. Annie Leibovitz is an icon in her field of photography and in this issue she takes some great ones of our new President and his cabinet (including an unfortunate one of Tom Daschle.)

My favorite stories in the March issue are "Glamour Begins at Home" by Matt Tyrnauer and "Children of Paradise" by Todd S Purdum. "Glamour" is about architect and interior decorator John Woolf who practiced in Hollywood in the 40's, 50's, and 60's. It delves respectfully into the unique relationship John had with his partner, lover and eventual adopted son. The story has all the glitter of that period and includes wonderful pictures of some of the homes he built.

"Children" is similar in that it is about the older Hollywood that no longer exists. Purdum interviews some of the children growing up in Beverly Hills during the 40's, 50's, and 60's to find out how it was then. He describes a more innocent time where your every move wasn't monitored by a pack of paparazzi. Not that it made all of their lives perfect. Purdum also talks about the troubled families like the Crawfords (i.e. coat hanger girl), and the Crosbys.

The writer also reminded me of a great book that I read as a young woman called "Haywire" by Brooke Hayward. She is the daughter of Leland Hayward and actress Margaret Sullavan and describes in intimate detail the tragedy of her families life. Now that Vanity Fair has brought all of this up for me I've decided I must read it again. The book would be a great read for anybody interested in this period in Hollywood.

A Passage to Juneau by Jonathan Raban

I have been away for a while visiting the lovely island of Maui. I know it is a difficult job having to hang out in the sunshine in the Hawaiian Islands but I was happy to do it. We rented a condominium in Maalaea that was to die for! Not exactly inexpensive in the high season, $295.00 a night, but when compared to prices at Kaanapali and Lahaina it is very reasonable especially considering the quality of the condo. It is the Milowai Ocean Penthouse, #407. You can check out pictures of the condo at http://www.mauibayview.com.

Now that I have made everybody sick with the news of my very nice vacation we can go ahead and move on. Of course, you cannot go on a vacation without a great book to read. In my case I was able to kill two birds with one stone - please honey and have a book for Hawaii. My husband recommended that I read "A Passage to Juneau" a couple of months ago. We are amateur sailors and the book is about a man who sails his 34 foot sailboat from Seattle to Juneau, Alaska. My husband loved it and promised that I would too.

Well, he was right. The book is great. It was so riveting for me that sometimes it actually managed to draw my attention from the humpback whales playing in the bay in front of our condo, and that is saying something. Jonathan is an interesting fellow with a vocabulary that will make you wish you were carrying your dictionary with you. Try this one - cthonian.

The forest was the least of it. Above and beyond the treeline, Alaska looked like the work of a megalomaniac confectioner. In any other light but this freakish sunshine, its snowy barrenness would have appeared intimidating and oppressive. These were the forbidden mountains of Indian stories---a chthonian region to which unfortunate humans were occasionally abducted by terrible powers.

For the bewildered among us the definition of chthonian is "dwelling beneath the surface of the earth - nether regions" or "being of the underworld - infernal regions" according to freedictionary.com. Jonathan is saying that for the Indians the mountains were not beautiful but frightening and liable to kill you if you gave them a chance.

This book works for me on many levels as a reader. I majored in History in college and Jonathan intertwines the narrative of his journey with a lot of great historical stuff. He utilizes Captain George Vancouver's "Voyages" that describes the Pacific Northwest coast as it looked to the officers and sailors aboard the Discovery and Chatham in 1792. He also seriously explores Northwest Pacific Coast Indian lore. Jonathan at first seems harsh and overly critical in regard to white people's long held beliefs about the Indians and their traditions. But the author manages to squash and/or modify many of my previous assumptions in a way that is not negative to his subject.

The book is also chock full of scientific information. The author is clearly a renaissance man who takes an interest in everything around him. (If you need any further proof of that please note that he carries a microscope on board just so he can eyeball the tiny creatures who live in the water of the Puget Sound). He is fascinated with the way water moves, the way Dahl dolphins swim with the boat, and the depth of the sea underneath him to name just a few of his curiosities. The beauty of his writing is that he will make you interested in these things too.

And, of course, the author does not leave his own personal narrative out. During his trip his family is hit by a personal tragedy that calls him away for a few months. It also forces him to confront his own issues about growing up and the relationship he has with his parents. I sensed from his writing that he was less comfortable in this subject than in any other but that he still speaks in a sincere voice.

On a whole other level the book is great for me because I've actually sailed on some of these waters. I've woken up in a secluded bay in the San Juans to watch the sun rise, and viewed the dolphins race through the waves alongside the boat. I've sailed through the turbulent waters of Deception Pass and been scared witless even though we did fine. And I have enjoyed a glass of wine at sunset gunkholing in Shallow Bay on Sucia Island. These are fine things.

So whatever your interest whether it be sailing, Alaska, Indian lore, or the history of discovery, you will find something in this book for you. I'm notorious for reading books more then once and I'm pretty sure I'll be reading this one again. Hopefully by the light of a lantern rocking slowly in a cozy saloon somewhere out on the waters of the Pacific Northwest.

Sham - In the Shadow of a Superhorse

I already revealed my inner horse lover in last weeks review of "Old Friends", so I might as well dive all the way into the pool and review another horse book. Yesterday I finished "Sham" by Mary Walsh. Between watching the incredible inaugural and reading this book I shed a lot of tears and I have the swollen, and particularly unattractive, eyelids to prove it.

For those of you too young to have witnessed it yourself, Sham is the horse that ran second to Secretariat in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness in 1973. He was also the only horse to run with Secretariat, at least for a while, in the Belmont that year. Of course, everybody knows that Secretariat won all three of those races and became this countries first Triple Crown winner in decades. Mary Walsh looks at it from the view of Sham who without Secretariat would have been the super horse that year and perhaps the Triple Crown winner as well.

She rights a poem at the beginning of the book that expresses exactly what she means.

"To those
Who tried their utmost
At something they strongly believed in
With their whole heart and mind
And gave it their absolute all
Only to find that it was not enough,
because they were in the wrong place in time."

I know how she feels about Sham. He was a great horse that just ran into a phenomenal horse. I remember watching those races. In the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness I was actually rooting for Sham. But by the Belmont I realized what we were dealing with as far as Secretariat was concerned and I rooted for him to win the Triple Crown but I still felt sorry for poor Sham.
Even Penny Chenery, owner of Secretariat, had a soft spot for Sham.

The author begins with the birth of both Sham and Secretariat each at their own farms. Secretariat was born on March 30, 1970 (only ten minutes from the exact time that Man o War was born 53 years before) and Sham just a little over a week later on April 9th. She follows Sham's early years and training before embarking on his racing career at the age of two. Walsh does a good job of describing his races even though sometimes her language becomes a bit over the top.

Walsh tries to parallel the racing careers of the two horses as they work towards their destiny as rivals in the Triple Crown. After Sham won the Santa Anita Derby the owners knew they wanted to race in the Kentucky Derby. They also knew that their number one competition would be the big red horse called Secretariat who had also had very impressive racing results.

The rest of the story is just a heart breaking tale of the big, beautiful dark colt trying and failing against Big Red. Reading Walsh's description of the Belmont reminded me of something I read in "Seabiscuit" during his match race with the great War Admiral. Hillenbrand quotes Seabiscuit's jockey George Woolf as he described the race later, "Woolf looked back. He saw the black form some thirty-five feet behind, still struggling to catch him. He had been wrong about War Admiral; he was game. Woolf felt a stab of empathy. 'I saw something in the Admiral's eyes that was pitiful," he would say later. 'He looked all broken up. I don't think he will be good for another race. Horses, mister, can have crushed hearts just like humans.' "

After the Belmont Sham was also dispirited. Unlike the previous two races, his jockey Laffit Pincay Jr. did not push the horse past his limits to catch Secretariat. Sham had tangled with Big Red at the start of the race going head to head at ridiculously high speeds with Secretariat not even trying hard. Sham had been pushed to the point of breaking and Laffit knew it. He pulled him back.

Walsh uses a column in The Thoroughbred Record by Arnold Kirkpatrick to express how people felt about Sham after the Belmont. "To digress briefly, the one distressing facet of this year's Belmont to me was the damage to Sham's spirit.....a horse of great beauty, speed, and heart, who was, far and away, the best of the others of his generation....Secretariat had broken his heart like a twig, and Sham was fading to finish last, beaten by 42 lengths. Whether he will have the fortitude to return from his trouncing after a layoff, or if his spirit is broken altogether will remain to be seen, but it was indeed a sad thing to see the magnificent Sham come back an ordinary horse."

The epilogue was especially interesting to me since Mary Walsh gives us a rundown of what eventually happened to Sham's competitors - the ones that were not Secretariat. One named popped off the page - Stop the Music. Stop the Music was one of the few horses to beat Secretariat in a race even though it took a disqualification to pull it off. He was a great race horse who also became a great sire and grandfather to 2005 Kentucky Derby winner, Giacomo. The reason his named jumped at me was because he is featured in "Old Friends." When Livingston visited him at Gainesway farm he was 31 years old! According to Walsh he died at 35 years old from complications of old age.

Mary Walsh's sentiment for the horse aside the book is only adequately written. This is not Laura Hillenbrand's "Seabiscuit." The past conversations Walsh creates with the horse's owner, trainer and jockey are a bit stilted and don't sound very natural. She also takes a lot of license in describing the feelings of the horses and the people involved. But overall it was wonderful to remember that great horse and the part he played in horse racing history.

"Old Friends - Visits with My Favorite Thoroughbreds"

I am the little girl who loves horses that never grew up. Most of us get over it when we meet boys but not yours truly. You will find me ensconced in front of the television for every Kentucky Derby, Preakness, and Belmont. And in the last few years the Breeders Cup.

Every time one of these beautiful horses gets hurt or dies I swear that I'll never watch racing again. But my love for the horses keeps bringing me back. So last month as I was searching for good horse books on Amazon I found "Old Friends" by Barbara D. Livingston, I immediately put it on my wish list.

The reviews I read absolutely raved about the book. The problem was the book is out of print but available online for $149.00. (Prices are down to 89.99 now). Her new book "More Old Friends" received equally fantastic reviews so that is the book that I requested for Christmas. Fortunately I am blessed with parents who go the extra mile. They found the original on e-bay being sold by the author herself! They even got it autographed with an additional bonus of a small drawing of a horse penned by Barbara Livingston.

Barbara is a photographer with a love for horses and it shows in her stunning pictures. Her camera and her love for her subject allow her, in some cases, to almost capture the soul of a horse. The elderly face on the cover on the book is Raja Baba son of Bold Ruler. In the photo he is 34 years old and had been fully retired since he was 19. He was moderately successful on the racetrack and was named leading sire in 1980. He passed away shortly after the book was published. For me, knowing the horrible fate of so many horses, it is heartwarming to read about them living long well cared for lives.

The author covers some of the true greats like Seattle Slew, Affirmed, John Henry and Spectacular Bid. Some of the very near greats like Pleasant Colony, Little Current, Gato Del Sol, and Genuine Risk. You may recall Genuine Risk who became only the second filly to win the Kentucky Derby in 1977. A pretty chestnut with white flash down her nose and the guts to beat the big boys. She died at age 31 just last August.

Along with these special horses are stallions and mares that very few of us know anything about. The story of the mare Our Mims was one of these. Born in 1974 Our Mims was a half sister to the great Alydar. Her 2 year old racing career wasn't much but when she turned 3 she burned up the track winning several stake races that earned her the Eclipse Award for 3 year old champions. After her racing career she was only moderately successful as a broodmare and so at 21 she was put out in a field with cattle to survive or die.

Fortunately for Our Mims a woman named Jeanne was working on the farm. She took a liking to Old Mims, despite her some times haughty nature, and fed her grain and groomed her. When the farm burned down she convinced the owners to give Old Mims to an organization called ReRun whose motto is "recycling racehorses." Old Mims got a full veterinary workup, grooming and food before being taken to Jeanne's farm to live out her days. She died in December, 2003 at the age of 29. Her story and her life prompted Jeanne to create the Our Mims Retirement Haven a nonprofit dedicated to caring for retired broodmares.

All of the horses in this book are special in one way or another. It is wonderful to find out what has become of the heroes of your past. If you love horses like me then you will love this book. Barbara Livingston has done a fantastic job of bringing them to life for her readers again and giving them their just recognition after all these years.

More Kingsolver

With the completion of "Bean Trees" I reach immediately for "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle - A Year of Food Life." This is a non-fiction book about Barbara and her family living a year on food from their own garden or other local sources. Her oldest daughter Camille contributes recipes and weekly menus to the book. Her husband Steven L. Hopp, a college professor who teaches environmental studies, contributes unfortunate realities about the food we eat and her youngest daughter Lily holds the crazy looking lima beans on the book cover among other things.

I have a feeling that this book is going to have a lot of "inconvenient truths" in it. I already feel guilty just reading about the things that I shouldn't be eating. Which, if truth were known, encompasses just about everything served in America. Read the following grim reality from husband Steven.

"But getting our crop from seed to harvest takes only 1/5 of the total oil used for our food. The lion's share is consumed during the trip from the farm to your plate. Each food item in a typical U.S. meal has traveled on average 1500 miles. In addition to direct transport, other fuel-thirsty steps include processing (drying, milling, cutting, sorting, baking), packaging, warehousing, and refrigeration. Energy calories consumed by production, packaging, and shipping far outweigh the energy calories we receive from the food."

As interesting and perhaps less disheartening is Barbara's description of how America has moved away from food knowledge in a way never before seen in history. It is only less disheartening than Steven's contribution because it seems like something that is within our reach to correct. Admittedly, as she points out so well in the book, it would take some serious convincing to get some parents to believe that teaching their kids about agriculture is as important as math and reading.

We have recently seen that what you don't teach your kids is as important as what you do teach them. For many years we taught things in school like home economics and shop. Most adults today no nothing about economics in general. Our current financial crisis is a direct result of Americans blithely putting their money in the hands of "professionals" to invest. It is easier than learning how it all works and as long as we're all making money then all is well. Until we're not making money anymore and then we ask "What the hell happened?"

It is an abject lesson and Americans should take notice. Learning the basics is important. Knowing how food is made, what it is (why do you think we call it beef rather than cow meat?), and where it came from are things that our kids have no clue about. In their world these things come from "the grocery store" as if the shelves actually sprout that stuff.

Since I have just begun the third chapter of the book it is clear that it still has a lot to teach me. I hope it does more than teach me. I hope it inspires me to live better for myself and our planet. More on the book to come.