Puget Sound is a beautiful 100 miles or so of interconnected marine waterways along the state of Washington. Its deepest level is 930 feet. Its average water depth is 450 feet. This reviewer has never enjoyed the opportunity to visit. However, I just finished an anthology, Amidst the Changing Tides: Stories from Puget Sound, that makes me want to explore its natural beauty.
The anthology is edited by Drienie Hattingh, who lives in Gig Harbor, Wash. (located on the shore of Puget Sound) Hattingh is a novelist and short story writer, and she has contributed to this book. Hattingh once lived in Northern Utah. This reviewer, although not associated with Amidst the Changing Tides, has contributed to several books edited by Hattingh.
There are 29 stories in the anthology, which includes beautiful drawings. All the stories are well edited and don't tax the reader with excessive verbiage. They provide up-and-close, often personal descriptions of life in and around the waters of Puget Sound.
My favorite offering was the story, "Senescence," by Shannon Lewis. It's a fascinating tale of the last day in the life of a giant Pacific octopus. The passages tell the tale -- incredibly -- from the perspective of the sea creature. It's a poignant story, respectful, as the octopus deals with impending death, the loss of appetites and comforts it has enjoyed for years. The climax occurs in a shallow stream as the octopus feels the warmth of the sun.
Although not a scary story, the style contained a sense of the ominous, a foreboding that I'm accustomed to reading in dark literature. I was not surprised to learn that Lewis is a published horror writer.
Another story I enjoyed, and learned a lot from, is Hattingh's "Stella and Mac," a brief but heartwarming true tale of two Canadian geese, mated for life, that return to the same tavern in the town every year since 2015, making their nest to hatch their eggs. As Hattingh notes, people come to the tavern just to be witnesses to this annual event. (I had no idea Canadian geese mate for life.)
"Sound Therapy," by Tammy Joy Lane, is an emotional story of an Iraq War veteran, a woman, struggling with depression and raising a family in the Puget Sound area, which has lots of rain and dark days. To deal with this, she embraces the area she's chosen as home, noting its beauty and charm through long walks and other activities. The climax of this story, of encountering a seal during a walk, is powerful.
"Fishing the Alaskan Waters," by Ken Malich, is a spare, matter-of-fact tale about the challenges, travel and stress involved in trying to make a living from the sea. There's no high drama in the passages, but I found myself immersed with the interesting details of fishing life. It's something I'll never experience, but I certainly respect.
As mentioned, there are 29 stories, lots of illustrations, and brief biographies. I recommend reading two or three a day. As you get to know these writers, you'll both learn a lot about and gain appreciation for life on Puget Sound, and the sea.
-- Doug Gibson
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