A Coastal Companion: A Gulf of Maine Almanac, from Canada to Cape Cod Catherine Schmitt Illustrated by Kimberleigh Martul-March and Margaret Campbell Paperback, $20, ISBN 978-0-88448-303-8 8 x 10, 176 pages, illustrations Environmental / New England

"Schmitt's experience as a science writer shows here as she engages readers' interest in her subjects while gently educating them. She moves easily between field-guide-style descriptions of fish, invertebrates, plants, and birds, clear explanations of migratory, tidal, and other natural processes at work in the Gulf, and thoughtful observations."
—Gulf of Maine Times

"It's how science should be explained. . . . This is a delightful book to read, browse in, and one that would make an excellent gift. There isn't a dull day in the whole year."
—Quoddy Tides

"In a superb effort to make natural science interesting, entertaining, and educational, Maine author Catherine Schmitt has produced a highly readable scientific almanac and field guide. . . . Schmitt offers one of the best books yet about science, written with clear explanations and loaded with clever anecdotes...a wonderful scientific treasury that wisely explores the enormity, complexity and inter-relationships between the land and sea and all the creatures of both worlds."
—Kennebec Journal

A Coastal Companion is a journey through the year in the Gulf of Maine and its watershed, which includes land from eastern Massachusetts to southwestern Nova Scotia. A chronicle of changes through the seasons both above and within the sea, A Coastal Companion follows the arrival and departure of migrating shorebirds in spring and fall, schools of fish as they move in and out of our region, and the natural cycles of our bays, rivers, marshes, and coastal forests. Part field guide, part almanac, the book also highlights writers, artists, and scientists who have chosen the Gulf of Maine as their subject matter.

Poems by twelve contemporary poets open each chapter, and illustrations by two Maine artists, Kimberleigh Martul-March and Margaret Campbell, are featured throughout the text. This is a book to keep close at hand, to be read not all at once, but through the seasons, one day at a time, and enjoyed year after year.

Catherine Schmitt is a science writer for the Maine Sea Grant College Program. She believes that combining science and art is an effective way to bring science to a wider audience.