Pocketful of Names

by Joe Coomer

"Coomer is clearly an author of serious talent." —The Washington Post Book World

Inhabiting an island off the coast of Maine left to her by her great-uncle Arno, Hannah finds her life as a dedicated and solitary artist rudely interrupted one summer when a dog, matted with feathers and seaweed, arrives with the tide. He is only the first of a series of unexpected visitors and is soon followed by a teenager running from an abusive father, a half sister in trouble, a mainland family, and a forlorn trapped whale. In the engrossing drama that unfolds, Hannah's love of her island solitude competes with her instinctive compassion for others.

In this booksellers' favorite and two-time Book Sense pick, now available in paperback, Joe Coomer offers the rugged yet stunning beauty of Maine and the lobstermen and their families who are dependent on the sea for survival. Pocketful of Names is a deeply human tale about the unpredictability of nature, art, family, and the flotsam and jetsam that comprise our lives.

Genres: Fiction, Book Club, Animals, Literary Fiction, Novels, Nature, Dogs

304 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Joe Coomer is a fiction and nonfiction writer who lives outside of Fort Worth, Texas, and on the coast of Maine. He "spends his winters in Springtown, Texas, where he runs a pair of large antique malls. He lives in a fairly new Victorian house that he spent a year and a half building in the late eighties, a project he wrote about in Dream House [1991]. His wife, Isabelle Tokumaru, runs her paintings conservation practice in the third story, while he writes novels in the kitchen, where the food is close. Summers, they live in Stonington, Maine, an active fishing village on the coast. When the weather's nice, he takes his old motor sailer, "Yonder", on day sails and cruises down east. He chronicled her purchase, restoration, and his stupidities at sea in Sailing in a Spoonful of Water [1997]."

Reviews

[Robyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the third Joe Coomer novel I've read, and it tops them all as my favorite yet! The story revolves around an artist named Hannah who lives as a hermit on a small island off the coast of Maine that was left to her by an uncle. She has items she needs shipped in and makes a living shipping her art out to a gallery that sells it for her, so she sees no need to ever leave her island or establish relationships with anyone. A series of events occurs that interrupt Hannah’s existence as she has known it for the six years she has lived there. What follows causes her to reexamine the way of life she has chosen and makes her question herself as an artist. I loved the way Coomer created such a distinctive cast of fully-dimensional, believable characters. These characters really came alive for me. Some of them were quite likable or even lovable, a few of them were unlikable yet able to illicit sympathy from the reader, one was quite possibly evil, and all of them were flawed in genuine ways. It is a coming of age story, a love story, a story of losing and possibly redefining one’s `religion’ (in Hannah’s case, art was her religion), and even has a mystery woven throughout its beautifully written plot. I hated for this one to end.

[Herb · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read Coomer's "A Flatland Fable" many, many years ago, and loved its description of an unlovable East Texas landscape. But that's been a long time, so when I saw this book on the feature table at my local indie bookseller, I had to do some digging to make sure that I got the name right. And, boy howdy, I'm glad I did.

This is the best novel I've read in three or four years. Coomer is a master of an understated, rural form of magical realism. In this case, Hannah, a quiet artist alone on her inherited Maine island, seems to keep acquiring people — people she doesn't really want, but who enrich her life in ways she never expected. The abused teenage boy; the pregnant fundamentalist sister; the fisherman who's lost his hands, and his daughter, the local water-taxi driver; and the fisherman's father, whose Alzheimer's has made him poetic. Oh, and a stray Minke whale. They just somehow appear, and Hannah's accidental menagerie renews her own capability to love.

And Coomer's language is delicious. "It occurred to her that she met everyone as if their first words to her were the last lines of a novel. To know them she was forced to work backwards in their lives, to read the book from last page to first." I read this whole thing, nearly 400 pages, in a single five-hour sitting, unable to find a place that seemed stoppable.

And you can't possibly be prepared for his one page epilogue. DO NOT check out the back pages; let the epilogue find you in its own time.

A truly outstanding book.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read Beachcombing for a Shipwrecked God a long time ago and still remember it as an interesting, complex, well-written novel (and since the boys were little kids at that point, remembering the book is a huge testimonial to its quality!). When I stopped into our local bookstore for its going-out-of-business sale, I spotted this Coomer work and decided to try it--and I am glad I did!

The novel centers around a main character who has isolated herself on the tiny island she inherited from a beloved great uncle where she works as an unusually successful artist. The first disturbance to her isolation is a washed-up dog, which Coomer develops wonderfully, giving Driftwood a rich variety of odd traits and habits--but the interruptions don't stop there, and the book becomes a story of the way Hannah learns to include other people and their demands in her life. It's also a deep story about accepting the truth about one's self-perception (Hannah's sudden humility teaches her a lot about how arrogant she was earlier, much as she tried not to be, and how her assumptions shaped her whole sense of self-worth and talent) AND about other people's characters and actions. At the same time, Coomer folds a sense of looming threat over the people we come to care about, adding a sense of urgency to the story that made me sprint through the last few chapters to be sure everyone would be okay. Coomer's final lesson, however, is more about the way people heal and survive than about "being okay"--and that's a lesson he teaches gracefully and gently. Like Anne Patchett's State of Wonder, Pocketful of Names reminded me of that Frost (?) quote: "This is one thing I know about life: it goes on."

I'd highly recommend this book as one to be read with attention and appreciation. Bravo, Joe Coomer!

**For anyone who lives in the "upper MidCoast area" (Blue Hill/Deer Isle/Stonington/Ellsworth), an extra pleasure of this book is that Coomer doesn't mess with geography much: people actually go to Reny's in Ellsworth, admire Caterpillar Hill, etc. I imagine he changed or invented some of the islands off Deer Isle/Stonington, but he's clearly working in a well-identified area, and I love that kind of detail in fiction. I used to think it was because "my students would love to read about their area in print," and then I realized *I* love reading about my area in print!!!

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It's a story of art, nature, the sea, identity, love, hate, loss, loneliness, home, many conflicting but also complementary notions. An artist, solitary, successful, lives alone on an island off Maine. Slowly people, the past, the world inflict themselves on her and everything changes. Change is always difficult and here we see multiple processes of change--in the human and natural world. This book kept me enthralled. I believe I will want to read it again.

As in One Vacant Chair, Coomer chooses a female narrator and does so successfully (to this reader's eye and ear). A big thank you to John for introducing me to Joe Coomer's writing.

[Cherylann · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure exactly how I feel about this book. I sense that with discussion, I might appreciate it more than I did when I finished it, but I don't have that luxury. First, I wasn't 100% sure what the exact problem was in the novel. There are certainly conflicts, but I was struggling with the "big" conflict. So I don't know if I'm happy with the resolution. Secondly, this is clearly a character driven novel, but I don't feel that any of the characters were overly developed. I felt that they stayed somewhat flat. Hannah is the one character that did change, but she needed to be more developed, IMHO. Keep in mind I think my prejudice of one gender writing the opposite gender came into play here. Most of the time, I don't notice the gender of the writer vs. the character. In this case, I felt that Hannah was flat and at times fell into gender stereotypes - in this case as the atypical woman. However, there were times when the writing was absolutely beautiful and the setting became just as much of a character as the characters. I loved the imagery in the book and the sense of isolation that was created by both setting and writing. I feel very mixed about this book.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the kind of book that confuses me. It's very readable and engaging but feels like I just ate white bread when I'm done. I didn't believe any of the characters. Will is just way too good to be true given his family circumstances but a nice character to read about all the same. It all ended a bit quickly with everything wrapped up neatly in a way that both did and didn't make sense. I was amused by the idea of an 80+ year old selling amphetamines to younger lobstermen! Is that possible? Well, not likely anyway.

[Gina Whitlock · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was beautiful and quiet. An artist's life is transformed slowly by a dog, then people. There is joy, sadness, tragedy and life affirming beauty. I don't think I could live on an island in Maine, but I certainly would love to go there for a healing stay.

[Jack · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story is set on an island off the coast of Maine that is actually owned by the author. The premise intrigued me when I bought this a while ago. All the characters are damaged in some way. Aside from the plot lines that were complex and intertwined, this book also sets up a number of questions about life. Can one live without others? Does everyone harbor secrets? What is art? What does it mean to be an artist? The politics and taxation of land in Maine? Distrust of others? Distrust of outsiders? Religious fanaticism?
A lot is packed into this 400 pages! One word of warning... this is a book without chapters. A 400 page story that just goes page after page! Every so often it throws in a couple of hash tags and you can take a breath! A twist or two at the end - a couple you could see coming, one that was a bit far-fetched. A good book.

[Beth G · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was interested in this book because it is set in the islands off of Stonington Maine, one of my
favorite places in the world. I was also intrigued with the central character who chooses to live in almost complete isolation year round on one of these islands. She is not on the island for long before all sorts of visitors start popping up or washing ashore. I never tired of the author's descriptions of the area but I have to say that the central character and her life wore on me. The read was a funny combination of wanting to see what happened next but often wondering how many pages were left. It might be a good beach read.

[Homira · Rating 2 out of 5]

Really slogged through it, but the best character was the dog, which got no more air time after the beginning. Main protagonist, Hannah appeared self-absorbed and selfish in not wanting to share the sanctuary and solitude of her island. Not a fun character despite excuses of early trauma and loss. I've seen worse. Sad, I was hopeful about his writing. The scenery and weather were lovely, writing strong, just plot and characters needed hammering out.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful, multi-layered story with quirky and interesting characters. Hannah, a successful artist, lives alone on an island off the coast of Maine bequeathed to her by her great uncle Arno. Quite satisfied with her solitary existence, she is gradually beset by local visitors of every ilk, and ultimately opens her heart to the possibility of love in all its forms.

[Romi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where has this author been in my life? Such a beautifully quiet book, a character study filled with love, compassion and issues of identity, family, and more.

[kerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

oh my god oh my god oh my god if you do one thing in your life it should be to read this book

[Jeff Talbott · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.75 stars. Joe Coomer hasn’t written a novel in 19 years so I’m guessing he won’t but I have read them all and I had set this one aside on a to read pile that just kept growing. And now that I’ve read it, I’m filled with such joy that I did, and such sadness that I may never again get to experience his wonderfully quirky, heartfelt and richly human stories of lost souls colliding with each other in a confusing and chaotic life. If you don’t know his work, you should. This and One Vacant Chair and Dream House stand out for me, but honestly… just dive in.

[Raven · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read! Fell in love with the Maine coast and Hannah’s island.

[Quirky Shauna · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is nothing I didn't like about this book. I love Coomer's use of words as tools to build a picture. The characters are fascinating and real enough to relate to. This book defies definition; it's not about art or dogs or hermits or loss. It's about life, about living.

Favorite word pictures:

"The leaves downward hurry left the sea's surface fall-splattered and tannin-drunk."

"He seemed to offer compliments as offhandedly as he might puck a blade of grass, as if they cost him nothing."

"The black water, overwhelming but finite, reflected an infinity of stars, about enough to fill a cup if she picked them from the sky."

"Snow began to fall as she made her way down to the boat shed. The snow fell into the calm sea, the act of forgetting made visible."

"There was something unsettling about her painting ceaselessly photographed before the slow shutter of elevator doors."

"Smoke, the same color as the driftwood, rose into the sky with the wandering curl and amiability of a feather's fall."

"It's a lovely word. It doesn't taste bad at all. It starts off so innocently and sonorously and ends abruptly with that sharp spit. It's one of my favorite words. So few words really mean what they say. Shit is honest."


Favorite quotes:

"It's all right not to understand some things."

"I'll grant there'll be plenty of opportunities to give up."

"People always say they get lost in a fog. I always thought I was real easy to find: nothing else to look at, the noise of the world hard to hear. You get caught up in a fog and the only thing for it is to sit still and listen for what's not there. You've got to hold your own hand."

"The only important thing about art is making it.... The only art lost is the art not made.It's a hard thing to remember, he said, because you have this competing desire to impress others and be appreciated. Rarely does that make your art finer. What made your art better was being impressed with your own turnout."

"I want you to know: I tried people. They didn't work."

"You like to read?
Yeah. You can be alone even if you're in a room full of people.
I always thought of reading as never being alone."

"It was useless to say, 'Today I will not be afraid,' because bravado was only a parasite, could not live without fear. When fear killed you, bravado slunk away to another host."

"He didn't seem so old, although Will had told her he was almost eighty. He walked fluidly. His skin seemed healthy and bright. But his eyes lived in his face as if they were constantly looking for a way out."

"She'd read somewhere that there were three things worth doing in life: making something new, caring for something old, and finding something lost."

"It doesn't need to be a secret that we make mistakes. I just wear mine, and so I have to come to it sooner."

"It occurred to her that she met everyone as if their first words to her were the last lines of a novel. To know them she was forced to work backwards in their lives, to read the book from last page to first. Answers had little relevance without knowing the questions."

"You've got to cook outside at least once a year to remain connected to the planet."

"Every leaf and stone deserves a name, so we can call it when it's gone from us. He's a good whale man, but he doesn't name whales because he doesn't believe in losing them. When he does lose one, he's bereft. He doesn't even have the name to put in his pocket then."

"I don't know if I'm confident enough anymore."
"That would seem like the perfect time to begin." he said. "That seems like the only honest state an artist should reside in. If you're confident you can make some art, maybe it's not art. If it's going to be art, it should begin in uncertainty, shouldn't it?"

[Nannette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ah....I would hand carry this book to you if I could. Funniest thing is I found it at my neighborhood "Take A Book" box; packed it for a trip, and stayed up really late reading it every night. This has something for everyone! Take a book, take a risk, build a memory, and pass it on.
Thank you, Joe. Can I visit you at Ten Acre No Nine???

Stretch your vocabulary, CHECK!
WOW, take my word, bring a dictionary!

Break your heart, CHECK!
As a woman who has felt the 'curse' of unrequited love, several characters in this book, both male and female have been on either end of this equation. It's interesting to see how it builds and breaks each of us. I found Hannah to be hard at first, not enough emotion. I wondered if that was just because our author is male. Hannah and her emotions, coping, controlling, hiding, embracing, losing, loving and tenderness are IMMENSE, they just need light, air, water and circumstance to grow.

Family, CHECK!
Deceased parents, Great uncle, difficult half sister, step daughter, sons, step father, step grandfather, missing mom's, 'adoptive' mothers, left behind children, abusive fathers/boyfriends living in a community that doesn't consider an outsider an insider until you're dead and buried on their soil... you may not know you want a family, but they're out there; go make one!

How do you take a grown boy at 17 into your life, when you liked being alone and felt betrayed by your half sister for the 'dump" and yet build the love of mother and son? You just do...

Fall in Love (with the characters), CHECK!
My favorite characters conversations were Hannah and Mr. Eaton. He suffered dementia and she told him who she was every day. She told him secrets because she could. He told her secrets because he only remembered the past that was never told to her, though she lived it. One of their last conversations she asked if he knew her name, he said "Henna" She agreed that was "Close enough!" My father-in-law just passed and he had dementia, my favorite conversations with him were the private ones. I wish we had more!

Learn something new, CHECK!
Lobstering, Art, Boat building, saving a whale, levers, hiding ....

Dog lovers, CHECK!
Meet Driftwood....you gotta love him!

Loss, CHECK!
endless endless loss....builds the greatest character!

The great state of Maine, on a tiny little island, CHECK!
How do you live on an island of the coast of Maine? How do you not? I'd love to try it for a year!

Ok, friends....This one comes back to the bookshelf, but if you want a loan....I'll consider it!

[Joanne Woodard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I chose Pocketful of Names off a bookshelf in my favorite bookstore because someone had put a card inside saying, “this is the best book you’ll ever read by an author you’ve never heard of”, which intrigued me. Well, that certainly held true for me. The story takes place on an island in Maine and was so clearly described that by the end of the book, I felt like I had been there. My favorite part of the book was the variety of characters, all so well-developed that you felt like you knew them. I read this book in two days, because when I set it aside to do other things, I found myself thinking of the characters, wondering what was going to happen next. I liked that the storyline wasn’t predictable, but logical in how the characters lives played out and intertwined with each other’s in a way that they were all impacted by individual actions. I would highly recommend this book.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book but found that I read it much slower than my usual pace. About halfway through, I realized it was because I was re-reading so many lines, so many paragraphs - and that was simply because there was so much to take from this novel. The analogies, the descriptions... they were incredible. "The shirt was working out of his pants, like a pack of dogs backing out from underneath a low fence."
And... "It occurred to her that she met everyone as if their first words to her were the last lines of a novel. To know them she was forced to work backwards in their lives, to read the book from last page to first. Answers had little relevance without knowing the questions."
Can't wait to get my hands on more of Coomer's work.

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

My choice for "A book a friend recommended"

I thought because a fellow dog lover recommended the book and because of its cover, it would be about a dog. The prologue was really an emotional read for me. I started reading the book waiting for the story about the dog. As each character was introduced, I kept asking myself "where is this going?" I still was looking for the story about the dog. Half way through the book, I was tempted to not finish reading it but decided it was worth finding out where the story was going. I'm glad I did, even though it wasn't about the dog; it was worth my time to read it.

[Coffeedog · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don’t know exactly what to say about this book. I liked it. It was most definitely NOT a happy book; in fact, it was a lot depressing. And yet, it still was a good book. It was well written. I felt like I really did get to know EACH character as different as they all were. There were some things, big things, that were NOT a surprise. I could see them coming for pages and pages. But it did not ruin the book surprisingly enough, because there were enough other things that I didn’t see coming that kept it interesting. The last page, the added epilogue page, made me smile and was, in my opinion, a needed page. I look forward to finding more of Coomer’s books to read now, as this was my first.

[Dina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a story of hermits and exiles, so it is fitting that the main character lives on an island. For exiles, they communicate beautifully. The dialog sometimes feels like psychologically rich poems punctuating long silences. Each character suffers a loss and must overcome grief. As the pattern plays out, you start waiting for the next loss-redemption cycle, but the story is so engrossing and believable that you don't mind watching the characters get knocked down in sequence.

I put all other books aside for this one, and couldn't wait to pick it up each day.

[Candice · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book a lot, although I did think that, at just over 400 pages, it was a bit too long. Hannah, a 34-year-old artist lives alone on an island off the coast of Maine, and enjoys the solitude. A dog is washed onto the shore of the island, and this event seems to usher in a lot of changes. Family secrets are revealed, and soon Hannah is left to question how she has led her life. The author does a great job with characters. I could relate to all of them, and because of his skill in developing them, I enjoyed the book a lot. Loved the dog and old Mr. Eaton in particular.

[Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have to admit, I was a bit concerned with all the adjectives in the prologue. Once I got past that, I fell in love with the book. I definitely recommend those who are Mainers or are in love with Maine as a whole to read this book. I thoroughly enjoyed it. One more admission - never heard of this author or book until it became the book of the month for the local library book club. I plan to see what else this author has written.

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Joe Coomer....from my first reading of Beachcombing, I've loved him madly. Though I couldnt imagine a book that would knock One Vacant Chair off the top of my most favored book list, this one has done it. It's amazing, and the first book I've ever immediately reread to pick it clean of any delicious tidbits I missed on the first read.

[Denise · Rating 1 out of 5]

Couldn't finish it. The writing and the dialogue seemed erratic and it was hard to like any of the main characters.

[Katherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Two roads merged in a wood, and we, meeting there, decided to go on together," he told her. "That's Mr. Robert Frost."
"No," she said, "Two roads diverged in a wood, and I- I took the one less traveled by."
"I like mine better."

I liked this book more than I thought I would. In fact, I loved it like one does a well worn sweater. I feel as though I have lived a whole other life through its pages. I know the heft of a lobster cage and the stubbornness of an old boat; the roar of the ocean pounding away the inevitable. I know how someone can become so caught up in their own pride that they draw away from the world and forget how to truly live; how the arrival of an ocean-logged dog can be the start of a new way of life, the way light shines through cracks beneath a doorframe.

This book was slow and thoughtful, bouncing back and forth from past to present. Each interaction chips away at a bigger picture that is frighteningly relatable. It is introspective and close to the heart, revealing the depth of relationships and human nature in a way that is real to life. It might be a slow-burn book, but it is full of character-driven intensity. From the forgetful Mr. Eaton, cautious Will, bubbly Zee and stubborn Tom with his hooks for hands- I came to know and love every single character in this book. At the forefront the relationship between old man Arno and our main character, Hannah, shines with salt crystals and love. Hannah's journey to self discovery is a long road, but it is worth the 400 pages. The island of Ten Acre No Nine seems to draw those who are lost to it, and together they discover that perhaps leaning on other people isn't so bad. The setting of the island, the ocean and the way of life for the lobstermen was perfectly pictured. I could feel the salt in the air, hear the scratching of driftwood in the quarry. Perhaps it isn't a dog book like I originally thought it to be, nor is it very thrilling, but I cannot deny that I was any less enthralled. Definitely a surprising and satisfying read.

[Laura Bolduc · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pocketful of Names by Joe Coomer is a book that takes every reader on a rollercoaster of emotions. As someone from Maine, reading this book was very interesting since it is written about someone living on a small island in Maine. Hannah is an artist living alone on an island by Mount Desert Island. It was passed down to her from her Uncle and she lives on it while making artwork which she ships to a gallery in New York. Hannah’s life starts to change when a dog washes up on shore and then again when her half sister sends a runaway boy to live with her. As the novel goes on, more and more people come into her life and slowly she opens up to them and a new way of life. With a couple of twists along the way slowly the people in her life start to leave until once again she is left alone, but now she doesn’t enjoy it.
Pocketful of Names is very well written. Throughout the book Hannah is slowly changing and it’s not noticeable as you read but once you get to the end of the book Hannah is not the same person she was in the beginning. Joe Coomer does a great job writing Pocketful of Names because of this. It makes the book more real and relatable to the reader.
Pocketful of Names was one of those books that you think about when you’re not reading it. Though its many pages may seem daunting at first, the story keeps you flipping the pages until you’re almost done in no time! I thought about what would happen next when I wasn’t reading it and even when I didn’t mean to. I would just be at home or at practice and find myself longing to get back to reading it.

[SG Barnett · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing is good. Very good. But--- I have issues with this book.
SPOILER AHEAD:



The author created characters you care about. But I am absolutely floored that the main mysteries, the main threats, are simply shunted aside like "Oh, never mind," by the end.
I was actually angry when I finished it. I wanted to know who was digging holes. I didn't look forward to the showdown with the bad guy, but to simply leave it hanging felt lazy at best, and totally unsatisfying. And to bring in another character, a totally unexpected one, to substitute for the bad guy - just didn't do it.
Finally the epilogue, which seemed to be dedicated to someone who said, "Seriously, this is such a downer you'd better have a little redemption," felt like an afterthought, too.
Should you read it? I'd say maybe not.

[Eliece · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really, really liked this book. Almost gave it 5 stars, and I rarely do that. It was beautifully written, and had a very engaging story as well. I read it very slowly, just to savor the words and the way they were put together. In the acknowledgments, the author said that he was in the mood to write a happy book, and I'm so glad that he did. Although it had a good many sad parts, these didn't bring the book down, but just felt like a part of natural occurences. The characters were so well developed that they felt like old friends that I hope to meet again someday.