"Allen Sockabasin's heartsong to growing up Passamaquoddy is a must-read primer for anyone interested in the rich cultural heritage of native tribes, the supposedly endemic poverty, and the fundamental reasons underlying disagreements over state welfare agencies, game laws, and gambling. . . . Allen Sockabasin comes across as a visionary, and his book reads like a loon's plaintive cry for understanding."
—John Robinson, Maine Sunday Telegram

"This is the story of a cultural leader's lifetime of service to his tribe and its endangered culture. But Allen Sockabasin's remarkable story goes beyond memoir. It offers a compelling and often gut-wrenching account of how the Passamaquoddy people experienced the twentieth century, battling widespread racism and maintaining an uneasy relationship with the forces of "progress" sweeping rural Maine and the rest of the nation. It's a book with a distinct and important perspective. Nobody with an interest in this region's history should miss it."
—Erik Jorgensen, Executive Director, Maine Humanities Council

Drawing on his memories and an oral tradition, Allen Sockabasin returns to his Passamaquoddy village of Mud-doc-mig-goog, or Peter Dana Point, near Princeton, Maine. When Allen was a child in the 1940s and 1950s, his village was isolated and depended largely on subsistence hunting and fishing, working in the woods, and seasonal harvesting work for its survival. Passamaquoddy was its first language, and the tribal traditions of sharing and helping one another ensured the survival of the group.

To the outside world, they lived in poverty, but Allen remembers a life that was rich and rewarding in many ways. He recalls the storytellers, tribal leaders, craftsmen, basketmakers, hunters, musicians, and elders who are still his heroes, and he explains why preserving the Passamaquoddy traditions and language is so critical to his people's survival in modern times. Many rare photographs illustrate this fascinating memoir.

Allen Sockabasin is a musician and storyteller who has performed in the U.S. and Canada. He has worked as a logger, builder, landscape contractor, tribal councilor, tribal chief, HIV/AIDS program coordinator, and substance abuse and child welfare director, but his primary interest is the preservation of the Passamaquoddy language and culture.