The Island Files is a radically innovative collection of stories that explore Maine’s unique island communities and the unforgettable cast of characters that inhabit and visit these communities. Framed within the context of a groundbreaking work of scholarly non-fiction, the collection introduces readers to an underground organization known as the Island Society that documents the experiences of individuals as they suffer, grow, love, fight, create, and simply try to survive in the Gulf of Maine.
Weaving together stories about a suicidal beekeeper, an encounter with Jack Kerouac at a local boxing match, a contemplative long-distance kayak trip, and the tragic loss of an island family in a house fire, The Island Files examines the whole range of human emotion through intimate dramas of people struggling to understand themselves and others. In “The Emerald Bikini,” a late ferry prevents Dean Sullivan from delivering Patti Kittleburger to the regional bikini contest, thus sealing the fate of their relationship. In “Final Jeopardy,” Constance Moody recounts the tragi-comical story of an island man, Dick Jensen, who loses $4200 on the game show Jeopardy when he gives the wrong answer to an easy question about the Maine coastline. In “The South African,” Marsh Burns shares an adrenaline-charged story of revenge and small-town justice on Mount Desert Island. These are stories of heartbreak, of community tragedy, of self-exploration, and of personal loss, all set in a remarkably rugged and resilient landscape.
A must-read for anyone drawn to the Maine Coast, The Island Files offers a world rich in magic and wonder, drawing on the mystery of a long-guarded secret while illuminating our interconnectedness as human beings.
