Customer Reviews

George Magoon and the Down East Game War: History, Folklore, and the Law (Folklore and Society)

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George Magoon may not be particularly well known outside of specific regions in Maine, but readers will recognize him as an embodiment of distinctive character types: folk hero, trickster, local character, and wisecracker. This highly readable book shows why Magoon and a number of similiar characters from backwoods Maine deserve greater consideration within the wider scope of American history. Ives first documents Magoon's life history through the actual stories told by relatives of Magoon and through conventional historical resources, and he also situates the biography within the context of Maine's social history, particularly as it pertains to the legislation and enforcement of wildlife protection policies over 100 years ago. Ives then presents his readers with vivid and often highly entertaining stories about Magoon, many of which still remain vibrant within the oral traditions of Down Easters. The book then discusses similiar stories about Wilbur Day and Calvin Graves, two other woodsmen who also ran afoul of the law as it was enforced by game wardens one hundred years ago. Ives completes the book with an insightful and well-argued conclusion that brings together the disparate stories and historical figures by showing how the narratives can be read in relation to wider patterns of social tension and cultural change that ensued after the passage of laws that restricted hunting and trapping. The various participants in the "game war" and the specific stories are interesting in and of themselves, but Ives masterfully demonstrates how the particular examples can be read to reveal a wider understanding of the social history of wildlife management in America.