Working the Sea: Misadventures, Ghost Stories, and Life Lessons from a Maine Lobsterman

Working the Sea is the story of a Maine fisherman’s life, a collection of memories and teachings from a master storyteller. Author Wendell Seavey, who grew up in the 1940s in the fishing village that inspired this story, avoids the overly romantic or picturesque language of other fishing and working-class narratives, writing in a true Downeast Yankee voice and candidly describing both the joys and hardships of the fishing life. Seavey is firmly rooted in the fishing traditions of his community and family, and the book reflects these deep roots. But his perspectives and observations are unique and at times unexpected as he travels across the United States, engages in psychic and spiritual activity, develops an environmental philosophy of life, and meets a host of memorable countercultural characters. Seavey also shares practical lessons about approaching life’s “insurmountable obstacles” and getting past them, and about his transformation from a “fisherman-user” to a “fisherman-ecologist” striving to be part of the cycle of life. This new edition includes an account of the author’s two-year sojourn in Texas as well as several other new stories.

Wendell Seavey was born in 1938 in Bernard, ME. As a child he spent most of his time with older fishermen who told stories of their lives, which Wendell absorbed and remembered in detail. As he became older, he blended the experience and teachings of these men with his own story. Seavey has lectured widely on lobsterfishing, fishing in general, and fishing communities in the North Atlantic, including at the Mount Desert Oceanarium. He lives in Southwest Harbor, ME.