Compass Rose Bookstore Castine Maine

...a meeting of the minds...

Castine, Maine is a different sort of place. A summer destination from the time of the rusticators, visitors today feel like they've stepped into a Norman Rockwell painting, or the twilight zone...The paper comes out once a week and is 10 pages long. Your real estate agent by day may be your bartender or waitress by night. On the Fourth of July, kids still get to ride around town on the tops of fire trucks, sirens wailing. And you may need to stand in the middle of the downtown intersection to get cell phone reception.

On the end of a peninsula, Castine is the sort of village full of surprises waiting to be discovered. In the early years of colonial North America, the flags of four European nations flew over the settlement of Castine (English, Dutch, French, American), and the native Abenaki people made their presence felt here too. Earthen forts from the American Revolution and the War of 1812 dot the village and serve double duty as little league diamonds and wedding locations.

Maine Maritime Academy is a four year college specializing in preparing young men and women for careers in the merchant marine, engineering, small boat operations and marine science. Its training vessels The State of Maine, the Arctic Schooner Bowdoin, and the tugboat Pentagoet dominate the Castine waterfront.

We have a rich literary tradition in Castine, from Robert Lowell and Elizabeth Hardwick to Mary McCarthy, poet Phillip Booth, and contemporary novelists Deborah Corey and Jeff Lewis. E.B. White and Robert McCloskey, famous for their children's writing (among other things) are associated with nearby Brooklin. Superstar Linda Greenlaw lives "just around the corner" on Isle au Haut. Many poets, authors, and illustrators make their summer homes in Castine and the surrounding area.

Check our MAINE bookshelves for tagged titles showing authors from Castine/local area/Maine/or New England.

A bookstore in such a special geography must reflect the unique features of its community. We work hard to keep a selection of books that speak to the values and history of this place. Here you will find seafaring stories, maritime and colonial history, Maine-based writers and children's books--all topics close to our hearts and which we are honored to share with you.

For additional information about events here at the Bookstore as well as in Castine, please check our "Coming Events" page.

For a listing of events around town for the summer...

check out

the listing compiled by

the Castine Merchants Association

http://castinemerchantsassociation.com

and

the Castine Arts Association

through

the town's listing at

http://www.castine.me.us

and