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Peter Scott
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Something in the Water Paperback – January 1, 2000

by Peter Scott (Author)
3.9 3.9 out of 5 stars 11 ratings
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Set during World War II on an island off the coast of Maine, Something in the Water tells the story of a lobster fisherman, Amos Coombs, who knows that German U-boats are hiding out along the coast by day and sinking American merchant vessels at night. Until one terrifying day, however, he is unaware that the enemy is quite literally in his backyard or that the presence of a Nazi submarine is about to change his life and those of his fellow islanders forever. More than just a war novel, this excitingly original novel presents a vivid portrayal of a community and a way of life. In the first book in the Maine Island in Wartime trilogy, Peter Scott gives us a beautiful picture of Down East Maine life in the 1940s and the people who lived there.  He experience in that place and in war come out in his detailed descriptions and perfectly real dialogue.  
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  1. Print length
    302 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Down East Books
  4. Publication date
    January 1, 2000
  5. Dimensions
    6.2 x 0.64 x 9.08 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0892725176
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0892725175
  8. See all details
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The Amazon Book Review
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Editorial Reviews

Review

Life would be much more pleasurable if there were more stories this compelling, more writers as gifted as Peter Scott. -- Tim O'Brien, author of THE THINGS THEY CARRIED and IN THE LAKE OF THE WOODS

Peter Scott is a marvelous storyteller. . . . This is a cause for celebration. -- Christopher Buckley, author of THANK YOU FOR SMOKING and LITTLE GREEN MEN

Scott's characters come to life with the full scope of emotion, rich in old Maine colloquialism. -- Linda Greenlaw, author of THE HUNGRY OCEAN: A SWORDBOAT CAPTAIN'S JOURNEY

From the Inside Flap

Also by Peter Scott:The Boy Who Came Walking Home - Maine Islands in Wartime IIBarter Island - Maine Islands in Wartime IIILost Crusade: America's Secret Cambodian MercenariesIn Deer Isle, Maine: the 16th Maine Volunteer Regiment at Home and at War

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Down East Books; First Edition (January 1, 2000)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 302 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0892725176
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0892725175
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 14.9 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.2 x 0.64 x 9.08 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.9 3.9 out of 5 stars 11 ratings

About the author

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Peter Scott

Peter Scott

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Peter Scott is the author of one history and three novels (a fourth recently completed), including the 2007 published Barter Island (Down East Books), which has been praised by legendary fiction writer Tim OʼBrien as "tender, funny, sad and scary, and boy oh boy does Scott nail the setting". The Boy who Came Walking Home and Something in the Water, which the Boston Globe called "A thoroughly engaging novel", are prequels to Barter Island, and all of them deal with themes of war and peace. A veteran of the Vietnam War as a U.S. Army Officer, Peter was raised in Maryland. He earned his M.A. in 1973, and has published 15 short stories and numerous magazine articles. An English teacher at Hawken School, Peter lives in Chagrin Falls, Ohio.

Customer reviews

3.9 out of 5 stars
3.9 out of 5
11 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Josh Scandlen
5.0 out of 5 stars Confusing book - But well worth sticking till the end
Reviewed in the United States on June 16, 2023
Verified Purchase
Not going to lie, I almost stopped reading half way through. First off, the discussion of boat details was way over my head. And I was having some trouble keeping track of the various characters. Not the author's fault though. it was mine. I'd read right before bed time and my brain would get fogged so I couldn't remember the next night where I left off.

However, when I tried to focus on the book, about half-way through I found it to be spectacular. Not sure why but one of the ending scenes, the clambake on the island made me tear up. I'm from an island in Maine and it made me think of days gone by, of a simpler time. I know every generation says that. Of course we always remember the past with rose-colored glasses. Still. A great scene and one I'm very happy to have participated in by reading it.

The ending ticks me off too. Not at the author, but because of the waste of humanity in fighting wars. How many lives have been ruined fighting another man's battles? It's a sickness among humanity. There is no good war. None. And those that advocate it, can go pound sand.
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W. Adams
4.0 out of 5 stars Don't Let The Subject Scare You Away...
Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2002
...enjoy the story.
Peter Scott's "Something In The Water" often is characterized by genres ranging from WWII war novels to submarine warfare. Amazon's subject search includes: World War, 1939-1945; German naval operations; and submarines. Even the book's jacket focuses on hidden German U-2 boats and the Nazi threat. Such descriptions easily scare away most readers ~ and that's a shame.
The book offers much more than this first impression. It is a story about people, relationships and the inner-workings of small, coastal-Maine fishing town, forced to deal with the start of WWII and its encroachment into their way of life. The war is not the subject matter. Instead, characters, families and the fishing village itself are the central elements of the story. I thought more of "Our Town" than "Das Boot," and that is why you will enjoy the book.
Enjoy getting to know the characters and the community. Enjoy their relationships and other social customs prevalent at the time. Enjoy the nostalgia and the memories. Into that context, add the suspense of the subject matter: a stranger in a small town and German submarines off Maine's coastal shores. The ending may disappoint you. It is a bit stretched for my taste. However, the story telling is worth your time.
17 people found this helpful
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