Chickens, Gin, and a Maine Friendship
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A book that includes writing from E.B. White, do I have to say much more? Probably not, but I will.
Chickens, Gin, and A Maine Friendship is a compilation of the letters sent between E.B. White and Edmund Ware Smith during the 1950s and 1960s. Though the two lived within driving distance of each other in coastal Maine, they were not frequent visitors of each other. The letters that White’s granddaughter rescued from a bank vault and published in this book show a caring friendship, sharp intellect, and writing genius.
Within the letters, we see how life gets in the way of friendships and time just passes too quickly sometimes. We also learn about the joy of simple things, and the complexity of things many of us might not have considered - the planning of a chicken coop, for instance. A chicken coop might sound like a mundane topic, but in the hands of White and Ware Smith, it’s an opportunity to see how even the mundane can be transformed by a talented writer.
We also get a peek at the behind-the-scenes of writing and publishing, as well as pieces of downeast advice like this: “Never try to remodel a back kitchen during deer hunting season.”
TL/DR: A look at friendship, at rural life in Maine, at writers’ lives, at health and sickness and the all-too-fleeting years of life, these letters are worth the read.
Maine Thoughts: The letters provide a decent appreciation for the joys of life on the Maine coast, as well as that enjoying a simpler life here can take hard work - even if you’re a well-known author.