Remember Tom Hennessey from the Bangor Daily columns he wrote a few years ago? Many are now in a great book, along with his unique artwork, called “Leave Some For Seed,” published in Maine (2014) by Islandport Press in Yarmouth.
His easy and descriptive language make nearly each page an adventure as he shares knowledge and wisdom from his mentors’ pasts as well as his own observations. He laments the loss of free-hunting areas and credits “social, political, and cultural attitudes” for the great changes to public access to traditional hunting and fishing areas.
Also, he notes, “For the most part, the techniques and methods of hunting, fishing, and trapping haven’t changed much.”
We found his descriptions of habitat and animals’ behavior interesting and informative, although this reviewer is neither a fisherman nor a hunter.
Hennessey loved dogs, hunting dogs or otherwise, and likes to describe his animals in sardonic form while royally using loving, descriptive language. His stories of his friend Hank and Ben the Lab are heartwarming while he is relating a brutally wet and cold duck hunting trip.
Another amusing tale is called “Happy and Healthy,” describing smelt fishing at night on the banks of the Penobscot River.
It is fun to follow a year’s activity in these lively pages — an enjoyable book, for sure. “Leave Some For Seed” is found in Cary’s Maine Collection — thoughts for the budding hunter and fisherman on preserving Maine, its way of life, and its natural treasures.
