When the Island Had Fish: The Remarkable Story of a Maine Fishing Community

by Janna Malamud Smith

When the Island had Fish is the story of a tiny island, Vinalhaven Maine, that offers a close look at the significant history of Maine fishing particularly, but also offers perspective on the impact of industrialized fishing on small fishing villages all over the United States and the world. Vinalhaven’s documented habitation by fishermen dates back over 5000 years, and still today lobstering is the primary source of employment for its 1100 year round residents; islanders currently harvest lobsters at a rate almost unrivaled nationally.



The book investigates the changing meanings of the notion of a “fishing community” and of community members changing relationships with the natural world and with international commerce. Through this broader lens, it sheds light on the way that species, including humans, are impacted by – and at moments contribute to - climate change, environmental degradation, and sustainable and unsustainable uses of natural resources.



When the Island had Fish also provides a meditation on America’s past and future. Vinalhaven’s fishing history is in every way America’s history. It’s a story of habitations by native peoples and European-American settlers, their use of natural resources, their communities and kin, and their efforts to find ways to live in a harsh environment. Anyone interested in creating a viable collective future will learn from reading about the Penobscot Bay fisheries and fishermen, and about Vinalhaven’s citizens’ expansive knowledge of craft, husbandry, self-governance and community independence, and interdependence.

438 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 15, 2023

About the author

Janna Malamud Smith is a practicing psychotherapist and the acclaimed author of four books, including An Absorbing Errand: How Artists and Craftsmen Make Their Way to Creative Mastery, My Father is a Book: A Memoir of Bernard Malamud; A Potent Spell: Mother Love and the Power of Fear; and Private Matters: In Defense of the Personal Life. Her titles have been New York Times Notable Books and she has been interviewed about her work on top national broadcast media. Her newly published book, An Absorbing Errand: How Artists and Craftsmen Make Their Way to Creative Mastery, examines the psychological obstacles and fears that prevent aspiring and established artists from building a sustainable, nurturing, and realistic creative practice against the background of how many of today's hot button topics, including social media, technology, the recession, sexuality, and identity, impact the creative process. For more information on Janna Malamud Smith, please visit: www.jannamalamudsmith.com