Sentries Along the Shore

by Elinor Dewire and Elinor De Wire

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0965731316
• ISBN13: 9780965731317
• Release Date: July 1997
• Publisher: Sentinel Publications (CT)
• Length: 176 Pages

Customer Reviews

Fascinating history and science of lighthouses!

Most lighthouse books are laundry lists of individual lighthouses, sprinkled with dull facts about dates of construction and rebuilding, names of lightkeepers, and basic stats about height, number of granite blocks, or how many steps spiral to the top. The true history of lighthouses is much harder to find and harder still to write in a fluent, engaging style. This is where Sentries Along the Shore differs from other lighthouse books. The author goes well beyond pictures and platitudes to present the true history in the context of place and time. She's a skillful storyteller able to weave the facts into accurate and meaningful anecdotes of life before lighthouse automation and modernization, when lighthouse keepers were highly valed and necessary government workers. I have several of Dewire's books and would recommend any of them. What's special about this one is its variety and scope. There's a lot of material in it that connects you to the broader American story. In keeping with the emphasis on genuine history, the publisher chose a number of lovely old engravings to illustrate the book. These add a nostaglic touch and give a hint of the reverence people had and still have for lighthouses. This is one of the best lighthouse books to appear in recent years, exceeded only by Dewire's previous title, Guardians of the Lights.