A Pleasant Reminder of Simpler Summers – 4 stars
With the exception of the final story, this collection is set in the 1950s at a group of summer cottages on the Connecticut shore and is about the families who gathered there. This was at a time when ordinary, middle class families could afford to buy and build right on beachfront property. My, how times have changed on that point!
The first story, “Betty, Beevo, Wally and the Cottage Coons”, is the weakest in the collection since we are given no introduction to the characters involved before being thrust into their comedic attempts to remove nesting raccoons from their cottage. Who are these people? Once the story gets moving though, there are some good laughs and chuckles to be had. I found myself cheering for the raccoons.
“Ode to Aunt Emeda” tells the background of how the land for the cottage was acquired and of the camping trip by the family to check out the area. Anyone who has been a party to the raising of a large camping tent will enjoy the description of the struggle of our intrepid cottagers-to-be.
The next installment will probably bring nods from many readers as they recall how they pulled similar pranks in their youth, as “Grandpa Lafleur’s Nap” turns into target practice for two boys on a summer afternoon.
“Hands Across The Sea” tells the tale of the same two boys as they have an adventure on Long Island Sound in a small motor boat that turns into something more than the planned picnic on a neighboring island. This was my second favorite story in the collection.
For pure slapstick enjoyment, “Grandma Sage Gets The Crabs,” could have been made into a comedy short by the Our Gang bunch or Three Stooges as a day’s crabbing ends up turning into a battle to the death against a horde of invading crustaceans.
My favorite story was “The Rockets Red Glare” which tells of a most memorable Independence Day celebration on the beach made even more memorable by some experimentation in ballistics by a certain two boys. In this day of regulations and restrictions, it’s sad to think that this type of neighborhood celebration can never occur again.
Rounding out the collection is a very short piece, “Squeaky, The Circus Cat” which is set in present day rather than the 1950s. Having been owned by a cat, I could easily relate to this cute story.
Overall, it was a pleasant few hours spent remembering the simpler times when families actually spent time together doing things, and when kids could roam around without being supervised every minute while they found their own adventures and experiences. Those of a certain age will enjoy these stories as a reminder and reminiscence, while younger readers will find them instructive both in how things were in the olden days and that their parents and grandparents weren’t always the sticks-in-the-mud they may seem to be now.
Recommended.