From A Wooden Canoe

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From A Wooden Canoe:  Reflections on Canoeing, Camping, and Classic Equipment

By Jerry Dennis, Illus. by Glenn Wolff. (204pp, St. Martin’s Press, New York, 1999)

The book is a collection of thirty-one essays the author wrote while a contributing columnist for Canoe and Kayak Magazine. Many of his essays, that appeared in a column tagged “Traditions”, are nostalgic in nature, trying to perpetuate the idyllic mental images of paddling and camping that we tend to carry in our heads. That, of course, is his job. Perpetuating the dream is what all magazines tend to do. So, he admits he has no experience with wood canoes, but selects one for the title and cover photo because they represent all that’s traditional and nostalgic in paddling. In the same vein, he writes about his thermos bottle, his old red and black checked logger’s coat, his admiration of the union suit, camp coffee, duct tape, leather moccasins, the scent of musty canvas, and so on. If you want a heavy dose of what we love about canoeing and camping, this is a short, easily read book to feed your addiction. You’ll also find the same mental comfort in the excellent pen illustrations that accompany every essay.