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Return to Wake Robin: One Cabin in the Heyday of Northwoods Resorts
Five generations of Marnie O. Mamminga’s family have been rejuvenated by times together in Wisconsin’s Northwoods. In a series of evocative remembrances accompanied by a treasure trove of vintage family photos, Mamminga takes us to Wake Robin, the cabin her grandparents built in 1929 on Big Spider Lake near Hayward, on land adjacent to Moody’s Camp. Along the way she preserves the spirit and cultural heritage of a vanishing era, conveying the heart of a place and the community that gathered there. Bookended by the close of the logging era and the 1970s shift to modern lake homes, condos, and Jet Skis, the 1920s to 1960s period covered in these essays represents the golden age of Northwoods camps and cabins—a time when retreats such as Wake Robin were the essence of simplicity. In Return to Wake Robin , Mamminga describes the familiar cadre of fishing guides casting their charm, the camaraderie and friendships among resort workers and vacationers, the call of the weekly square dance, the splash announcing a perfectly executed cannonball, the lodge as gathering place. By tracing the history of one resort and cabin, she recalls a time and experience that will resonate with anyone who spent their summers Up North—or wishes they had.
184 pages, Hardcover
First published May 21, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 75 reviews
November 18, 2023
A charming look at a time gone by and the simple pleasures of summer, nature, friendship, and family, all packaged in the beautiful natural setting of a quaint lakeside cabin.
You don't have to have spent your summers at a cabin on the lake to appreciate and enjoy the memories shared here. Each new scene brought to mind carefree summer days filled with simple delights: sitting on the dock, wading along the shore, picnic lunches, semi-competitive sporting challenges, road-tripping in the station wagon, kitschy souvenirs, parties with music and dancing, magical evenings of starry skies, and most of all, friendships and fun.
But also, there's a clear understanding that Wake Robin was a refuge from everyday life. The cabin, the community, and the comradery renewed spirits and provided peace, instilled hope and belief in oneself, restored families and strengthened relationships, and provided a deeper appreciation for the small pleasures of life.
A lovely reminder to take a moment to recall the small delights from the past and to experience new delights in the present.
You don't have to have spent your summers at a cabin on the lake to appreciate and enjoy the memories shared here. Each new scene brought to mind carefree summer days filled with simple delights: sitting on the dock, wading along the shore, picnic lunches, semi-competitive sporting challenges, road-tripping in the station wagon, kitschy souvenirs, parties with music and dancing, magical evenings of starry skies, and most of all, friendships and fun.
But also, there's a clear understanding that Wake Robin was a refuge from everyday life. The cabin, the community, and the comradery renewed spirits and provided peace, instilled hope and belief in oneself, restored families and strengthened relationships, and provided a deeper appreciation for the small pleasures of life.
A lovely reminder to take a moment to recall the small delights from the past and to experience new delights in the present.
July 10, 2012
Where to begin? Such charming and quaint stories lie within the pages of this book. Stories that tap old memories of loved ones who have since passed, along with friends and families one sees too infrequently. It reminds you of your youth, when the most important thing was putting on your bathing suit and running out to the lake for the day. Or the neighbor girl who would come calling "ding bell" to help kick off the day. Not to mention, traipsing through the woods in search of wild animals or simply a shortcut to the road. Marnie O Mamminga, captures all that lovers of the Northwoods hold deep within their soul and somehow puts into words what the allure and captivation is. Pretty heavy stuff for a series of tales about a resort and several generations of a family who love their cabin. Thank you to those that went before us. Resort and tavern owners Bill Walck and Joe Kash. Thanks to my grandfather for visiting his friends and finding the lovely Northwoods for his family and allowing us to pass that love on to others. Thanks to Marnie O Mamminga, for reminding me of all that goodness.
April 9, 2014
This is a featured author of the Fox Cities Book Festival. She writes the story of a cabin lovingly called Wake Robin by her grandmother when it was built in the 1920's. I grew up going to a family cabin in northern Wisconsin, and although we didn't have a lake, we built our own family memories and had grand adventures. I am still sad that it was sold when I was still a kid; I would have loved my children to know about our 'shed.' Mamminga does a superb job with her text. I especially loved the chapter entitled "Heading Up North: A Journey in Five Acts." I laughed out loud and even read parts to my husband. I also was struck with the end of a chapter about the author's birthday being during their time spent at the cabin. She writes, "For a birthday is not really about us, but about the life we have been given and the people who have graced it." That is an amazing way to look at something that some people dread every year; it really just struck me as fabulous. This author will be in town in 2 days as part of the festival and I'm hoping to be there talking with her about our great Wisconsin Northwoods.
July 12, 2012
This is a feel good nonfiction story that is told in vignettes about several generations of a family's stay in a Northwoods Resort. Each chapter is a different topic/detail of the resort! It makes you long for a simpler life and relish the time you spend 'away from it all'. Mamminga's writing is often poetic, tugging at your heart strings along the way!
July 19, 2012
I couldn't get to the Northwoods this July, but reading this made it feel as if I was making the trip :) Delightful stories told with a poignant voice. Loved this!
June 13, 2012
This is charming book of remembrances of the authors summer home in Wake Robin near Hayward, Wisconsin. She mostly concentrates her memories on her own childhood and summers at Wake Robin. She also writes of her father's and grandparents summer times on Spider Lake,with a few references to her own children and grandchildren's summer trips "up North" She gives the background of her family, the founding and beginning visits of her grandparents, and her father and mother. What is most wonderful about this book are her descriptions of her 4 siblings' activities and the warmth , love and and respect they have for each other, their parents, and their simple Wisconsin summers. It is an experience I envy and will never have but reading about it , written with such loving detail :packing the car, fishing, swimming across the lake, meals at the lodge, gave me such a real warm feeling of her experience; I could almost pretend her experiences were mine( if only!) This book took me away to a real place and time, a place and time devoid of angst, worry or fear, a place of good times and good feelings. LOVED it!
August 8, 2012
Such a delightful reminisce of days gone by in the heydey of northwoods resorts. I highly recommend this book for anyone who has ever loved the call of loons, the sparkling waters of northern lakes and the slam of a wood screen door. Cherish these memories of days long gone.
August 1, 2023
Nostalgic look at Wisconsin summer days spent at a family cabin "up nort'".
September 14, 2012
This book made me think of all the times I've spent in the north woods, the friends I've made, the fun I've had, the restful, relaxed feeling that washes over me every time we head north. There is beauty, serenity, tradition, comfort. My kids would tell you that "up north" is one of their favorite destinations - and they have learned that you don't need water parks full of screaming kids and cranky parents, or shopping malls and fancy restaurants for real fun. You need a dock, a boat, a fishing pole, a sled, a snowmobile, walking shoes, an ice fishing shanty... throw in some good friends, lots of laughter and good food, and you have the PERFECT way to escape. What's a shame is too many kids these days need to be "entertained" instead of entertaining themselves. I believe that is why the resorts like the one in this book are disappearing or have disappeared so quickly. People just don't want to go somewhere where they might have to create their own fun. They want WiFi, cable TV, etc. Such a shame.
November 2, 2014
This was uplifting to listen to. It was like a mix of "Star Lake Saloon and Housekeeping Cottages" and "A Christmas Story." It was a nostalgic love letter to the family cabin including funny and poignant anecdotes. The writing was lovely about nature and simplicity and how replenishing the spirit in the outdoors is vital.
January 17, 2015
Actually, I put it aside for now--it's very episodic and I'm more interested in finishing it in the summer when it's closer to my family trip to the Northwoods. I'm enjoying it, though at the risk of sounding snobby, the writing is more of a "homespun" type which doesn't appeal to me as much. Some of the stories and experiences still resonate, however...
August 14, 2012
I chose to read this book because I also grew up going 'Up North to the cabin'. I found many things that I could relate to and so many similarities between my time at the cabin and the authors. This is a special story and if you've spent anytime 'Up North', a book worth reading.
March 20, 2013
I don't usually care for books that are this "nice," but this one kept me engaged. Not sure if it was the setting (Hayward) or mood (nostalgic) that got me, but I recommend giving it a try if you've ever had an enjoyable no-frills lake vacation.
August 11, 2017
Fabulous memoir of early days UP NORTH in Wisconsin, by a granddaughter of cabin builders in Hayward area with fine descriptions of nature at its best! If you love Northern Wisconsin, you'll love these memories! A refreshing read about real people enjoying life in the 40s, 50s,60s up today!
July 14, 2012
Great summer read...takes you back to the days of summer cabins, fishing on the lake, and jumping off the dock!
March 21, 2014
loved it. brought back memories of vacationing in northern Minnesota during my youth and teen aged years.
August 5, 2012
I found myself laughing and crying as I read this book. My family had a similar cabin in the north woods of Ontario - my great grandfather having traveled up there, loved it, and built a cabin that has stayed in the family. So many of the stories from Wake Robin are the same ones that are in my own family's mythology and collective stories - future spouses taken to the lake to see if they are worthy, crashes on gravel roads, visiting bears at the dump, and the joy of visiting town for treats. But it is the sense of independence of a child when they are free at a cabin get away that touched me most. While I did not travel to the family cabin more than half a dozen times growing up, the rest of my family lived much as the author had and the cabin is like a family member. When the extended family get together, you asked how everyone is and you include the cabin - did the dock make it through the winter freeze or is the chimney still falling?
My grandfather and the author's mother must have come from the same mold. Every minute of the day's schedule - the cabin filled with extended family, friends and visitors and having activities for everyone starting at sunrise through the evening.
I did agree about how this era is now over. My generation loves to travel and see new places. I am guilty as any for following the siren song of Europe and the Carribean rather than returning to the same lake year after year. But it was the author's observation of how the time of spending time on the dock and just cruising to visit other docks is over that really sadden me. People hang out in the AC in the cabin and not on the dock anymore. The whole concept of traveling to the north woods and then sitting in AC is wrong. There are no longer square dances in small villages in the woods like the old days.
This was a special book. I am still struggling if I should give a copy to my aunts and uncles that lived this life. I found myself crying at many parts as we have sold the family cabin and this style of living can not be recreated - no one has six weeks of vacation, the lake's are filled with weekend jetskiers, and everyone is sitting inside their cabins.
My grandfather and the author's mother must have come from the same mold. Every minute of the day's schedule - the cabin filled with extended family, friends and visitors and having activities for everyone starting at sunrise through the evening.
I did agree about how this era is now over. My generation loves to travel and see new places. I am guilty as any for following the siren song of Europe and the Carribean rather than returning to the same lake year after year. But it was the author's observation of how the time of spending time on the dock and just cruising to visit other docks is over that really sadden me. People hang out in the AC in the cabin and not on the dock anymore. The whole concept of traveling to the north woods and then sitting in AC is wrong. There are no longer square dances in small villages in the woods like the old days.
This was a special book. I am still struggling if I should give a copy to my aunts and uncles that lived this life. I found myself crying at many parts as we have sold the family cabin and this style of living can not be recreated - no one has six weeks of vacation, the lake's are filled with weekend jetskiers, and everyone is sitting inside their cabins.
February 1, 2013
Closer to a 4.5 for this memoir of a lake cabin and its family, spanning nearly a century in the northwoods of WI. If lake cabins could speak...
Author Marnie Mamminga introduces us to the five generations of her family who've called the family cabin, named Wake Robin, "home" in their hearts. We also meet friends and neighbors who were part of the bygone era of the traditional lake resort. Lodge meals, square dances, guided fishing, organized picnics, and lazing on the dock are all part of this magical, simpler time. As the book develops and the history unfolds, we gradually get to know the author and her family better, almost feeling like we're part of the colorful and very personal history of this place.
By the way, the striking cover photo is Marnie's mother Woody, boundlessly energetic, equally at home in the great outdoors and as the ultimate hostess, and never without lipstick!
A very enjoyable read.
Author Marnie Mamminga introduces us to the five generations of her family who've called the family cabin, named Wake Robin, "home" in their hearts. We also meet friends and neighbors who were part of the bygone era of the traditional lake resort. Lodge meals, square dances, guided fishing, organized picnics, and lazing on the dock are all part of this magical, simpler time. As the book develops and the history unfolds, we gradually get to know the author and her family better, almost feeling like we're part of the colorful and very personal history of this place.
By the way, the striking cover photo is Marnie's mother Woody, boundlessly energetic, equally at home in the great outdoors and as the ultimate hostess, and never without lipstick!
A very enjoyable read.
June 20, 2013
The book is a quaint well written memoir of 5 generations of a family's experiences at a vacation cabin in Hayward, WI. The author describes earlier generations and her own from when she was a child through when she is the grandmother with her grandchildren. It is reflective of a simpler and quieter life style. Her family is from IL (we won't hold that against them) and drove 9 hours to Hayward. The early chapters tell stories of a time when the father would stay working in the city while the mother and children spent time at the summer home, in this case their cabin. The later chapters reflect now how times have changed where the Northwoods must compete now with vacations to water parks and amusement parks and the Disney mentality.
While we only did a couple similar vacations growing up, it brought back sweet memories and makes the reader long to sit on the dock and watch the water in peacefulness.
While we only did a couple similar vacations growing up, it brought back sweet memories and makes the reader long to sit on the dock and watch the water in peacefulness.
September 25, 2012
Return to Wake Robin is a wonderful memoir written by Marnie Mamminga. Marnie and her family have traveled to their cabin in the Northwoods of Wisconsin for five generations.Writing chronologically with a few backslips, Marnie brings to life the day to day and year to year adventures of her own family as well as a cast of characters who vacation and work at the other cabins and resorts on the shores of Big Spider Lake.
Much to her families delight, Moody's Camp, an American Plan Resort on the land adjacent to theirs, plays host to a fantastic group of fishing guides, square dance callers and vacationers of every kind. In the telling of her story, Marnie brings these long-ago and not-so-long-ago summers to life. Charming, funny and a touch melancholy, this book will touch your heart.
Much to her families delight, Moody's Camp, an American Plan Resort on the land adjacent to theirs, plays host to a fantastic group of fishing guides, square dance callers and vacationers of every kind. In the telling of her story, Marnie brings these long-ago and not-so-long-ago summers to life. Charming, funny and a touch melancholy, this book will touch your heart.
October 12, 2013
This memoir brought back wonderful memories of my family's trips to lake cabins in the 60's and 70's. We stayed at a cabin near Rice Lake, WI and even stopped at an A & W Rootbeer stand! At age 5 I learned to swim underwater, and tore open my foot, catching it on a nail on the dock, running to leap into the cold water with my sisters. Dad fished and Mom watched us from a lawn chair when she wasn't frying the fish or feeding us lunches of pbj sandwiches. Later we skipped the long drives from Kansas to Wisconsin and Michigan and took up cabins in the Missouri Ozarks, at Table Rock Lake and Lake of the Ozarks. I'd love to return to a Wisconsin cabin.
July 26, 2014
As someone who often visited her grandparents in "the country" which was really a suburb of our large city, I totally related to this. It brought so many memories of driving there, summers learning how to swim in the small lake and getting together with family. I did get a bit tired of Marnie's comparisons, but mostly her lyrical prose impressed me. The importance of nature, relying on the outdoors for your amusement, and appreciation of the beauty of her surroundings was enjoyable. It brings to mind an era that is long gone. A very enjoyable trip down memory lane.
March 10, 2017
A great read for anyone who spent vacations at "the lake," wherever that might be. Probably pretty darn boring for anyone else. Our lake is in Canada, and like the author's, it has welcomed 5 generations of our family and other families. I especially loved the chapters at the beginning and the end, where the author reflects on the quiet welcome of the lake and the passing of traditions from generation to generation. The stuff in the middle that was specific to her family's experience, was of less interest.
October 12, 2017
An entertaining, heartfelt but not overly sentimental, memoir of one family's cabin history in the Hayward Lakes area of rural Wisconsin.
I have a cabin, myself, in rural Wisconsin, so I enjoy reading about cabins and cabin life. Others may not find it as entertaining, but I appreciated that the author made her experiences universally appealing by framing this memoir as a harkening to simpler days gone by...
Not a great piece of literature in the grand scheme of things, but it was an enjoyable, light read.
I have a cabin, myself, in rural Wisconsin, so I enjoy reading about cabins and cabin life. Others may not find it as entertaining, but I appreciated that the author made her experiences universally appealing by framing this memoir as a harkening to simpler days gone by...
Not a great piece of literature in the grand scheme of things, but it was an enjoyable, light read.
February 3, 2013
I bought the book for my Dad for Father's Day, he and his Dad have a long history going to cabins in the northwoods of Wisconsin. I've heard wonderful things about the book, making it high on my list to read! It lived up to my expectations -not an easy task, very relatable read for anyone who's spent time vacationing next to a lake, summer holidays in a cabin.
August 9, 2015
I grew up in the Hayward area-spent much time at Moody's Lodge in the early 70's with the Grossi family-this book has brought back lots of memories, and also saddens me when I think of how all of this will soon be gone-so happy this family has preserved this wonderful family heirloom and hope it continues for generations to come!
This is a great memoir-relaxing to read
This is a great memoir-relaxing to read
October 31, 2015
Nice memories from the golden years of lake resorts in the Northwoods of Wisconsin. I felt like I really missed out by not having a place to spend the summer - our vacations on a lake in Minnesota were nothing like the experiences at Wake Robin.
I was very disappointed in the quality of the photographs in my print copy. They are very small.
I was very disappointed in the quality of the photographs in my print copy. They are very small.
December 8, 2016
I really enjoyed the story, especially having grown up in Wisconsin myself and having been "up north" many times. My only complaint is that the author got a little *too* descriptive at times. I felt like she was trying too hard to be poetic. Other than that, the stories were great and I loved reading about 5 generations of a family vacationing in the same cabin!
July 14, 2012
What a fabulous book! As a child and even today, I spend summers at the lake in Wisconsin. I could relate to every word and every memory. I recommend it to all my family and friends who spent time with us at the lake.
September 5, 2012
This is a quiet memoir of summer vacations on a Wisconsin lake and it leaves you nostalgic for a lost way of life. Marnie has done a great job describing what has been and continues to be an important part of summers in her family's lives.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 75 reviews