Summer Studies

Rating:
Summary: NOT a cruising guide to the Great Lakes
Review: I have cruised the Great Lakes for years in most of the same places as Mr. Dwelle, so I was eager to read his book "Summer Studies." And much of the work will be of interest to Great Lake sailors, but this is NOT a cruising guide. Rather it is a rambling retrospective that suffers from a few too many political comments and rants that have nothing to do with cruising, and only serve as an insight into Mr. Dwelle's politics. He even includes a 40 page history on the treatment of the local natives by white settlers, which - however interesting - seemed to belong more in a beginning anthropology textbook than a book on cruising.

If your politics lean towards the Green Party, and you have ever anchored out in the North Channel of Lake Huron, you will certainly enjoy the work. I found it self indulgent.

Rating:
Summary: You are rich
Review: I loved the vignettes about Michigan/Ontario history, interspersed with the sailing stories.
Who is wealthy? He who is satisfied with his lot.
Mr. Dwelle, though he takes each summer off in full (wow!) complains frequently about the wealthy, summer homes, power boaters, white men, etc. After a while, I skipped those parts because the rest of the book is quite enjoyable. Though not a cruising guide, it will certainly give you many ideas and places to explore.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent content, though in rough draft form
Review: Mr. Dwelle's book is interesting. There is no better or more complete history of the cities and towns that make up the Great Lakes region, making Summer Studies a surprising and valuable textbook.

Dwelle is a good storyteller, writing about the people he meets and the places he visits with obvious affection. And the setbacks that befall all sailors one time or another are here, often told with great humor.

However, Summer Studies suffers from several colosssal flaws. There is no discernible system of organization. It is as if the book was composed on a series of index cards which were then shuffled and made into a book.

Dwelle also never misses the opportunity to insult those who own powerboats. According to Dwelle, they are all ignorant buffoons who have no right to share his precious lakes, but in the book he never takes the time to give the reason for his bigotry.

Dwelle also unwisely allows his leftwing political views to get into the way. He says one town, for example, fell into hard times because of "Reganomics," but he is unwilling to elaborate or substantiate his claim.

I struggled over whether to give Summer Studies three or four stars. On content alone, it is superb. But the book screams out for a better editor, who could have shaped it into a five-star winner.

I hope Dwelle is working on a sequel. And I hope he has learned from the mistakes of "Summer Studies."

Rating:
Summary: good sailing
Review: The book is very enjoyable, with a mixture of cruising and commentary by the author. The author is very opinionated about some matters which makes for speculation as your reading. But the sailling material is excellent and well written and most enjoyable. It's rare to find a really good book about sailing on the Great Lakes.

Rating:
Summary: Reviewer is wrong
Review: The first review which criticizes this book is wrong. This is an excellent book. He criticizes it for having opinions, but that is what makes this such an unusual cruising book--not just weather and wind speed and anchorages. An excellent book that offers sailing and alot more. I recommend it highly.

Rating:
Summary: Abundance Book
Review: Yesterday UPS delivered my copy of *Summer Studies*. This is a terrific read and I recommend it for your winter reading. You will appreciate Ron's insights into his cruising world and his love of the Great Lakes especially Lake Michigan and his home port of Muskegon. While I'm not as contemptuous of the industrial/military complex as I feel Ron is, nor of the Coast Guard, I am enjoying his book immensely. Unless you are truly cerebral in your command of English, you might also wish to have a dictionary close aboard your reading desk or night table. I love Ron's command of the language.

If you love the Great Lakes as do most of us, you will enjoy *Summer Studies*.

Robert Manning Marquette, MI