Synopses & Reviews
The Loire is known as the Queen of Rivers, the playground and battleground of rulers. It is one of the most beautiful rivers on God's green earth. The Loire was never channelized like most big rivers in developed countries, and for much of its length is still a wild river, with braided channels, wetlands, islands, dead-end sloughs, limestone cliffs, rolling plains, and unspoiled river life.
The human culture on the banks is also extraordinary. The river winds through some of the best wine country in France. Fascinating ancient cities and châteaux occupy its valley, including Chinon with a hilltop fortress that dates to the Bronze Age, and Eleanor of Aquitaine spent a great deal of time. It passes through Blois, Orléans, and Nantesa seaport dating back to Roman times. Along its banks are Stone Age dolmens and altars.
Most people, watching sunlight on the water, can be said to have a little Huck Finn in them. Brian Anderson, a former journalist and photographer who has sailed from Texas to Turkey in a twenty-eight-foot sailboat, and paddled thousands of miles of river, can be said to have a lot. Casting about for a way to get to know his adopted land, the country of his wife and children, to see what he could see and meet those who crossed his path, it is perhaps no surprise that he decided to build a small boat and voyage gently down the Loire.
Synopsis
A literary travel narrative along the Loire -- food, wine, history, nature, boats, and some zany French people.
About the Author
Brian Anderson is an American writer living in Thenezay, France. He is also a first-rate boatbuilder and photographer.