Nancy Danielson Mendenhall Knihy

"Rough Waters: Alaska to Oregon, Small Fishermen's Battle" is for the great numbers of people drawn to fish, fishing, fishermen and their communities. But beyond those always engaging topics is the worry today over our fisheries' sustainability. The warming of our oceans, the politics and management issues are part of the growing public concern. For coastal people, especially, and river lovers too, the changes can't be ignored. Fishermen of the small-boat fleets (salmon, crab, halibut and cod, through nets, pots, troll and longlines are the ones particularly covered here) are the canaries in our giant watery coal mines. And they are always in competition with the industrial fleets and their lobbyists.The communities of the small-boat fleets are also at risk. Especially the youth are floundering--the ones who had planned to take over their folks' beloved livelihood. The transfer of permits and licenses to owners who never fish is evidence. The plight of specific fishing families described here will be familiar to those who come from a small-farming background."Rough Waters" presents all this graphically through a blend of on-the-dock interviews, the author's personal experience, historical photos and extensive research. It reveals the threats to a livelihood that for generations has been a huge part of the Northwest Coast mystique.

Five newcomers arrive at the 1998 Settlers' Reunion at the mid-Columbia River: two anthropologists drawn by the storytelling, two on special missions from their elders, and a Siberian shaman intent on river healing. A Wanapum Indian bus driver angry over salmon losses takes them into the devastated area around the defunct Hanford atomic plant, the scene of the 1943 settler evictions. That view, and the growing threat of nuclear waste from the plant, spark new insights, friendships, and loves. Decades-old anger is swept into vows of action to save the salmon, the Columbia, and the world beyond.