Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Here’s a little wearing’ o’ the green in Boston and Blue Hill and an affectionate look at Emilie Loring’s memorable, Irish characters. “I’m Bridie, the head chambermaid, Miss… Sure an’ ye’ll like it here, fine. I come to this house as a gur-rl more’n twenty-five years ago, an’ I ain’t never … More Sure, an’ ‘Tis a Fine Day fer the Blarney
This copy of Uncharted Seas has seen better days. I cannot tell you how many beach towels, canoe bottoms, and swimming floats it has seen, nor how many pillowcases, carry-on bags and jacket pockets it’s been stuffed into. I looked for a cleaner copy to show here, and then I thought, no, this is perfect. … More New Thinking and New Love in Uncharted Seas
Cape Cod is lighthouses, sand dunes, boardwalks, and sand fences. It’s shellfish—take your pick: lobster, clams, or scallops—plus cranberries, ice cream cones, and coaster bikes. When you grow up in Arizona, as I did, Cape Cod seems magical. I invoked it when I painted my home a salt-sea gray and again when I planted clambering, … More Fair Tomorrow on the Cape
“To the readers of my stories who, by spoken or written word, have recognized beneath the magic glamour of romance and adventure the clear flame of my belief that the beautiful things of life are as real as the ugly things of life, that gay courage may turn threatened defeat into victory, that hitching one’s … More Beautiful Things In Life Are Just As Real
The notes I’ve taken about my research have become as valuable to me as the information I’ve found about Emilie Loring. In this entry, I meet her grandson for the first time. July 14, 2003 “Yesterday afternoon, I took the train to Lexington–a subway stop with the interesting name of “Alewife”– and Selden Loring came to pick … More Journal entry: Treasure at the Lorings’
Swift Water is so different from Emilie Loring’s other novels. When Jean Randolph arrives home, Ezry Barker asks, “Say, Jean, been gittin’ into trouble so soon? Seems though I see th’ old symptoms. Didn’t fetch the Turrible Twin along with ye, did ye?” But that’s just what this book is about: terrible twins. Jean’s mother … More Tragic Undercurrents in “Swift Water”
It’s that time of the year when gardeners’ fingers itch to get back into the dirt. Snuggled under afghans, cradling hot drinks in our hands, we turn the pages of our gardening catalogs and dream of the months to come. “Growth rampant, fruit long and slim, dark green throughout the entire length with a light … More Emilie Loring’s Gardens
