{"source_url": "https://observer-me.com", "url": "https://observer-me.com/2020/01/01/fascinating-story-that-captures-rural-maine/", "title": "Fascinating story that captures rural Maine", "top_image": "https://bdn-data.s3.amazonaws.com/blogs.dir/442/files/2019/08/JIM-WHYTE-CENTER-AT-HIS-ELLIOTTSVILLE-CABIN-TWO-OTHER-ME-640x400.jpg", "meta_img": "https://bdn-data.s3.amazonaws.com/blogs.dir/442/files/2019/08/JIM-WHYTE-CENTER-AT-HIS-ELLIOTTSVILLE-CABIN-TWO-OTHER-ME-640x400.jpg", "images": ["http://www.i.matheranalytics.com/i?e=pv&aid=v1&cid=ma63069&mrk=92760912&p=web&tv=no-js-0.1.0&tid=<?php echo time();?>", "https://bdn-data.s3.amazonaws.com/blogs.dir/442/files/2019/12/Car-Chase-Shooting-40x40.jpg", "https://bdn-data.s3.amazonaws.com/blogs.dir/442/files/2019/08/JIM-WHYTE-CENTER-AT-HIS-ELLIOTTSVILLE-CABIN-TWO-OTHER-ME-640x400.jpg", "https://bdn-data.s3.amazonaws.com/blogs.dir/442/files/2019/12/HERMON-CAR-030713-A-LCO-40x40.jpg"], "movies": [], "text": "Photo courtesy of Richard Shaw MONSON HERMIT BOOK -- Jim Whyte, center, with two unidentified men at his remote cabin near Monson, in 1924. Whyte, known as the Hermit of Monson for the 30-plus years he lived in Maine, is the subject of a new book by Maine writer Jeffrey Ryan: \u201cHermit: The Mysterious Life of Jim Whyte,\u201d published last month by Maine Authors Publishing.\n\nFascinating story that captures rural Maine\n\nJeffrey Ryan\u2019s book, Hermit, is a fascinating and unforgettable story about Jim Whyte\u2019s mysterious life in a very remote section of the Maine woods in Onawa. I\u2019d never heard of Onawa, but I found it on my map, not far from Milo.\n\nJeffrey Ryan\u2019s book, Hermit, is a fascinating and unforgettable story about Jim Whyte\u2019s mysterious life in a very remote section of the Maine woods in Onawa. I\u2019d never heard of Onawa, but I found it on my map, not far from Milo.\n\nAnd a lot of the story features the town of Monson, which I passed through many times on the way to Greenville and Moosehead Lake. Jeff is a real outdoorsman and hiker (he\u2019s even hiked the difficult Pacific Coast trail) and he really captured the remote Maine woods and life in rural Maine.\n\nAnd while Jim Whyte\u2019s story is intriguing, Hermit is about a lot more than Jim Whyte, including everything from trout fishing to a terrible railroad crash. And a lot of the story is set in very remote camps, where individuals lived isolated and alone for decades.\n\nThe story is told in the first person by a man called Ben who does not live there but can\u2019t stay away. I don\u2019t want to give away too much of the story, but I can tell you it will not take you many days to read, because you won\u2019t be able to put it down.\n\nI wasn\u2019t surprised when Hermit was named a top pick for 2019 on a December Maine Calling show on Maine Public Radio.\n\nEarle Shettleworth, our state\u2019s historian, described the book well on the back cover: \u201cJeffrey Ryan takes us back to the mid-20th century in the Maine woods with a descriptive force and a gentle nostalgia that realistically evoke both time and place. Hermit will resonate with many readers who have experienced the mystique and beauty of the Maine wilderness.\u201d\n\nI especially enjoyed the photos at the end of the book. And I appreciated this message from Jeff at the end of the book: \u201cPlaces don\u2019t stay beautiful unless everyone pitches in to keep them so. If you go to Monson, Onawa, Milo, or other locations mentioned in this book, please respect the land and the landowners.\u201d\n\nHermit was published by Maine Authors Publishing. You can learn more about Jeff at JeffRyanAuthor.com which includes information about his other great books.\n\nSmith stepped down at the end of 2010 after 18 years as the executive director of the Sportsman\u2019s Alliance of Maine to write full time. He writes a weekly editorial page column in the Kennebec Journal and Waterville Morning Sentinel, a weekly travel column in those same newspapers (with his wife Linda), monthly columns in The Maine Sportsman magazine, two outdoor news blogs (one on his website, georgesmithmaine.com, and one on the website of the Bangor Daily News), and special columns for many publications and newsletters. Islandport Press published a book of George\u2019s favorite columns, \u201cA Life Lived Outdoors\u201d in 2014. In 2014, George also won a Maine Press Association award for writing the state\u2019s bet sports blog. In 2016, Down East Books published George\u2019s book, Maine Sporting Camps, and Islandport Press published George and his wife Linda\u2019s travel book, \u201cTake It From ME,\u201d about their favorite Maine inns and restaurants.", "keywords": [], "meta_keywords": [""], "tags": [], "authors": [], "publish_date": "Wed Jan  1 00:00:00 2020", "summary": "", "article_html": "", "meta_description": "", "meta_lang": "en", "meta_favicon": "http://observer-me.com/wp-content/themes/bpc-weekly/logos/favicon/favicon-PO.png", "meta_data": {"viewport": "width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0", "fb": {"app_id": 1276435375760502}, "og": {"title": "Fascinating story that captures rural Maine", "site_name": "Piscataquis Observer", "url": "http://observer-me.com/2020/01/01/fascinating-story-that-captures-rural-maine/", "type": "article", "image": "https://bdn-data.s3.amazonaws.com/blogs.dir/442/files/2019/08/JIM-WHYTE-CENTER-AT-HIS-ELLIOTTSVILLE-CABIN-TWO-OTHER-ME-640x400.jpg"}, "article": {"tag": "County & State News,Greenville,Milo,News"}, "twitter": {"card": "summary", "site": "@bangordailynews", "url": "http://observer-me.com/2020/01/01/fascinating-story-that-captures-rural-maine/", "title": "Fascinating story that captures rural Maine", "image": "https://bdn-data.s3.amazonaws.com/blogs.dir/442/files/2019/08/JIM-WHYTE-CENTER-AT-HIS-ELLIOTTSVILLE-CABIN-TWO-OTHER-ME-640x400.jpg"}, "generator": "WordPress 4.9.6"}, "canonical_link": "http://observer-me.com/2020/01/01/fascinating-story-that-captures-rural-maine/"}