Very interesting--we visited this island, however the book went on and on. ( )

Tangier Island is a tiny island in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay (between Virginia and Maryland on the East coast of the US) that is getting tinier by the moment. This is true for both the physical shoreline of the island and for the aging population.

The island is visibly sinking into the bay, losing feet of shoreline yearly due to rising sea levels from global warming. However, the islanders firmly believe that it's what they call "erosion", not climate change, as they are climate change deniers. While the island shrinks, so does the population. This is partially due to the crabbing industry, the main - really only - source of income for the island, falling apart. Maryland Blue Crabs are well known for their deliciousness and are a regional delicacy. But over-fishing and changing environment are making the crab population dwindle. Local regulations have brought back the blue crabs fairly successfully, but they are not as local to Tangier Island anymore, so the industry for the island is not sustaining families anymore. More and more of the younger generations are choosing to go to college and stay on the mainland.

The author of this book stays on the island for a year, getting to know the people and presenting a detailed history of the island. He discusses the science of what is happening to the island and the cultural significance of physical changes of the island. The author frames this as a larger discussion of what we're going to do as a nation as populated areas of our country are made uninhabitable by climate change. How big does a community need to be for the federal government to save it? Does cultural significance play a role in the decision? Tangier Island is a unique, isolated society with an important local industry, an accent so think they sound like they are speaking another language, and their own brand of government plus christianity.

I really loved this book. It's a fascinating look at an area and people that live within a few hours of my home, but whose beliefs, customs, and ways of life are totally foreign to mine. It is not at all "preachy" about climate change, it is actually a well-balanced look at the people, the island, and the politics.

Original publication date: 2018
Author’s nationality: American
Original language: English
Length: 382 pages
Rating: 4.5 stars
Format/where I acquired the book: borrowed from my mom who was reading it for her bookclub
Why I read this: sounded interesting - also because my mom told me several women in her bookclub sat out this month because they wouldn't read a book about climate change since they don't believe in it. :-0 ( )

(55) This is a non-fiction account of Tangier Island in the Chesapeake Bay - a crabbing community that has lived a fairly isolated life on this island since the 19th century. The island has been slowly sinking and suffering the fates of erosion and sea-level rise for the last 100 yrs or so. It seems clear the island will be no more unless the government erects some serious sea walls and land fills to protect and rebuild. The author spent a year or so on the island getting to know its people, their way of life, and their thoughts and philosophy about their vanishing island. I believe Swift did come to admire the Tangier men and women -- but... ummm. . . I sure didn't.

I had a hard time keeping all the people straight given all the similar names and last names - a cast of characters would have been helpful. I also ultimately found the intricacies of crabbing quite dull to read about - peelers, and doublers, and sooks, etc. It left me glassy eyed with boredom. Swift's writing is empirically good - although he did jump around a bit in time which was distracting. I most liked the history of the island, the early settlers, the stories of people who came to the island and made great changes. Perhaps if I had read this at a less divisive time in the country, I could have empathized with the Tangiermen more.

Basically, Tangier is like any dying rural town - filled with aging white uneducated evangelicals with chips on their shoulders and words and actions that are rife with ignorance and hypocrisy. The only difference is they are on an island. Does Swift really think his readers could possibly feel empathy for climate change deniers who rally against socialism, but want the government to save their sinking island? C'mon man. . .

I struggled my way through this book - it a lovely exploration of a place. I feel I could walk across the island and recognize everybody and everything and watch the gulls freewheeling in the sunset. But in the main - a bit dull and his subjects were frustrating people. ( )

This was a challenging book, as I suspect the author intended it to be. The people of Tangier are facing a twin crisis of sea-level rise induced by climate change and land subsidence triggered by the end of last ice age; their island is vanishing at record speed. They themselves insist on seeing this as "erosion," are fixated on some pretty unlikely and expensive solutions, and make sympathy challenging through their overwhelming support for Trump and antipathy for science and environmentalists. They love each other and are fiercely loyal and passionate about their landscape (which just goes to show that being attached to a landscape is not a panacea for environmental apathy), and also exceedingly sexist and resistant to change.

It brings up a lot of compelling questions without easy answers and is a worthwhile exercise in exercising empathy in a challenging situation. Highly recommend. ( )

The story of Tangier Island and how climate change is affecting it. Tangier since the early part of the 20th century has been disappearing as the ocean levels rise. Predictions are that in 50 years the island will be gone. This book does a great job of talking about the island’s history, its people, and how its demise has affected them and the industry that has sustained them for generations. ( )