Against the Tide: The Fate of the New England Fisherman

by Richard Adams Carey

With its spectacular beaches and charming towns, Cape Cod is known around the world as a vacation spot and a summer retreat for the well-to-do. But there is another Cape Cod, a hidden, hardscrabble, year-round world whose hunter-gatherer economy dates back to the Bay Colony. The world of the independent fisherman is one of constant peril, of arcane folkways and expert knowledge, of calculated risk and self-reliance -- and of freedom won daily through backbreaking, solitary work. It is a way of life deep in the American grain.
Haunted by the numbers of family fishermen who have recently been forced to abandon the profession, Richard Adams Carey spent a year among a handful of men who stubbornly refuse to do so. Reminiscent of the work of William Warner and Joseph Mitchell, AGAINST THE TIDE is a masterly profile of four New England fishermen in which every page opens onto something more maritime history, maritime ecology, and the poetic celebration of a special American place.

Genres: Maritime, Nature

384 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

Reviews

[Waven · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would describe this as a book I liked quite well and enjoyed but would probably not read again. First off, this book was written in the 1970s, which isn't made clear by some blurbs and reviews, so a lot of things it discussed are, well, obsolete. Outdated. In some cases, almost antiquated. But it is definitely a book worth reading. It may not be as engaging as some (yes, you have to put a little effort in getting through some passages), but the bottom line is worth getting to if you'll stick with it. Some of Carey's descriptions are quite beautiful, but often with less dramatic, poetic effect and more realism. There is some humor, some profanity, some sad and touching pieces, and a lot of the daily grind. This is not a fairy tale. This is about men covered in fish entrails, or up to their knees forking muck, or risking their lives miles offshore in an attempt to bring home enough money to make their payments. It is dirty and bloody and sometimes ugly, but it is true. It's good to know exactly how much labor goes into producing those fried clam strips you like so well, or that lobster platter that sets you to drooling, and how the fishermen see so little in return. That has not changed, even if the gear and the targeted species and the decades have. And the bits about the legislation should be required reading for us all; they illustrate the perfect insanity handed down from Washington, NOAA, and NMFS. If you have ever eaten a fish stick, or thought about eating a fish stick, or seen a box of them in the cooler at the grocery store, you should read this book.

[Alex Cunningham · Rating 2 out of 5]

I went to high school with Rick Carey's son. Mr. Carey worked at the school, and I spent many car rides with the two of them, on the way to their house, arguing about books. Mr. Carey has written a book about living in Alaska - "Raven's Children" - and once we were discussing another book about living in Alaska which was written by a neighbor of mine - Joe McGinniss' "Going to Extremes." Mr. Carey said that McGinniss' book was overblown, that it took a short period of time, lived really as an extended vacation more than a committed life, and exaggerated it into a compelling, but false depiction of Kodiak life. In "Raven's Children," Mr. Carey went on, he tried to capture the real life and struggles of Alaskans; he felt he had been one and knew really what it was like. I was loyal to both men, but even with Mr. Carey behind the wheel and about to be my surrogate parent for a weekend sleepover, I could buy his sense of authenticity but I couldn't imagine there was a fault in wanting to focus on the most exciting story possible when writing a book. "Going to Extremes" sounded interesting, if fictionalized; "Raven's Children" sounded authentic but boring.

Thus is "Against the Tide" - an authentic, carefully detailed and journalistic account of real life struggles, which itself is a real life struggle to read.

[Julie Barrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Against the Tide, the fate of the New England fisherman by Richard Adams Carey
Love hearing how the fisher people survive. Risky and arduous work and the reasons why the industry is declining.
This is about a story where the man is followed as he goes from company to yet another over the years, each a different fish industry.
Love learning how the trades are done. Politicians and rules and regulations come to light to help me understand what happened to the downfall of the industry.
Especially like the stats that bring it all together.
I received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a 3-star with a note: This is a 3-star because of content, not because of writing. The writing is an average attempt by a journalist (journalist almost always write technically accurate material, but it's always dry); Carey has chronicled an interesting story and an interesting plight. I enjoyed it because I love the sea and I like the story of those struggling to continue this old trade. With that as a preface, the book is so dry I can't remember if I finished it. I mean I'm finished with it, but I can't remember if I got to the end. There's your warning.

[Sue Campbell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another book on fishing as research...it was pretty well written and chock full of facts on the fate of New England fishermen and the fisheries that have kept us fed for hundred of years.