Tugboats hold a fascination not only for anyone who has worked aboard a vessel or around a harbor but for many land-bound folks as well. There is something about their chunky, powerful build and their often risky but vital work that excites our interest and admiration. The captains and crews of the tugboats are justifiably proud of what they do, and they have some great stories to tell about the ships and barges they tow or push; the harbors, storms, tides, and dangerous passages they must negotiate; the unions; the pilots; the different designs and capabilties of their boats; and the way the boats and their livelihood are irrevocably changing.

Virginia Thorndike, Maine's own version of Studs Terkel, traveled to all the Maine coast islands that still maintain a year-round population and persuaded the islanders to talk openly about their lives. The result is a compulsively readable, unvarnished, and appealing portrait, much of it in the islanders? own words. The 15 islands not accessible by bridge that still have year-round populations are: Isle au Haut, Islesboro, the Cranberry Isles (near Mt. Desert Island), Eagle Island, Long Island (Frenchboro), Long Island (Casco Bay), Matinicus, Monhegan, North Haven, Swans Island, Vinalhaven, Peaks, Chebeague, Great Diamond, and Cliff.

A revision of what has become a well-known guide, Windjammer Watching on the Coast of Maine provides a systematic review of the windjammer fleet in midcoast Maine, as well as some from away that sail here. Virginia Thorndike tells us how to identify all the individual vessels and gives the histories and vital statistics for each. This is an essential guide for anyone interested in taking a windjammer cruise, for boaters cruising the coast of Maine who want to identify windjammers they see, and for armchair sailors who enjoy reading about these traditional sailing vessels, most of which began their careers as cargo carriers, pilot boats, fishermen, and private yachts.