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Rating: 
Summary: On the Water
Review: A very nice read, with some memorable metaphors, such as the rowboat moving at the speed of a hand moving stealthily toward the swatting of a mosquito. Strangely, I found such throwaway lines the most diverting. Stone's experiences of the places and people he encounters generally fell a bit short of vivid or gripping or perceptive. And why wouldn't he include Laurent de Brunhoff's sketch of Babar plying the oars? Finally, the nitpicking editor in me asks: "plebian"? "miniscule"? Doesn't Broadway Books have a spellchecker?
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Summary: 6,000 Miles of Rowing Adventure.
Review: At age ten Nathaniel Stone pictured the eastern United States as an island he could circumnavigate. The author fulfills his childhood vision and chronicles the adventure with boyish enthusiasm in his first book, "On The Water". His seventeen-foot scull departs at the Brooklyn Bridge; Stone states, "I was a late bloomer when it came to anything adventurous." We sympathize as he quickly learns to deal with buoys, massive barges and numerous other obstacles encountered on the ten-month journey via rivers, lakes and canals to the town of Eastport, Maine.
Stone`s writing resonates the beauty of his surroundings; the writing engages the reader to the point of seemingly joining the author on the rowboat. Misadventures occur often along the way; the most notable is Stone being "THROWN OUT" of a small village on the Ohio River. The book reminds us how culturally diverse this country is-a glimpse into the towns that lie near the waterways.
Stone's innate desire to circle the eastern United States is a testament to follow one's dreams-a unique travelogue not in a rush to reach its destination. Several black-and-white sketches by Elizabeth Stone and a map inside the covers is a nice visual touch.
Rowing backwards six thousand miles affords him long periods of solitude within nature. Stone appreciates these solitary moments in the vein of Henry David Thoreau, the naturalist writer and author of "Walden Pond". "I sit up for another stroke, now looking down as the blades ignite swirling pairs of white constellations of phosphorescent plankton . . . `Remember this,' I think to myself."
Rating: 
Summary: Wonderful book, on par with "Walk across America"
Review: Being a guy who loves messing around in boats and having traveled overland near many of these places I have been fascinated by his journey. It makes me want to get a canoe, load it with my tent, bag and go. It's a modern version of "The Walk across America" or "Caught on the inside". Part of the reason for only having sketches of the people he met is that on a journey like this one, you don't have time to fully know everyone you meet. Also the book would have been a tome that only the most dedicated would be able to plow through.
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Summary: Let's Get Away From it All!
Review: Have you ever been driving across a bridge and looked up the river and wondered what it would be like to be on the river instead of the road? Well this book will give you a look into what it is like to be on that river. The author does an excellent job painting the picture of isolation and contact with the rest of the world. While the reader does get some feel for what it is like to row for mile after mile, the author does not push the physical requirements too far. The writer treats us with his various encounters with different people along his way while covering a wide range of personalities. If you have wanted to take that long walk (or boat ride) down the road (or river) then this book is for you.
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Summary: A Gentler Paul Theroux
Review: Nathaniel Stone brings to mind a gentler version of Paul Theroux or perhaps a more innocent Jonathan Raban. He relates the concept and experience of the short-term nomad with a skill that at times makes even Bruce Chatwin seem clumsy. And being an oarsman, though my voyages last but a few hours, I can attest that Stone captures the magical feel of sculling.
But most impressive is the obvious joy and the wonderful people Stone finds during his travels. I read this book over three days when The Washington Post (my local paper) was filled with depressing headlines about the war-mongers Americans had just elected and the impending ruin of our environment. My wife and I were, half seriously, discussing to which city in Canada or Europe we should move. Stone snapped me out of my funk with his upbeat take on Middle America.
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Summary: a unique view of people, places and things
Review: Stone presents a unique prospective of American people, values and geography. While the book is about a physical feat, the real story lies with the characters and e challenges. If you've seen America fro a bar, train and plane, you're in for a treat!
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Summary: "On The Water"
Review: This book is a great read, and it's one of those that you get lost in. The descriptions of Nathaniel Stone's travels and the people he meets come alive in your mind. And contrary to what another reviewer wrote, Zuni is not merely a place where Mr. Stone "went to teach Native Americans," Zuni is and has been his home for many years. He is a respected and well-liked member of the community and has a great many friends and "family" here. And I bet he's even helped butcher a sheep or two. If you ever get a chance to hear him speak about his rowing adventure, you are in for a treat. A wonderful book!!
Rating: 
Summary: Row, row, row your boat -- and write to tell about it
Review: This is a book of an incredible adventure, something few people would even dream about and almost no one has to courage to undertake, and yet there is a curious emptiness about the whole exercise. Thing is, it's not new. People have rowed boats across the Atlantic before, let alone on inland waters in North America. Stone things of eastern North America as an island, not as a great body interlaced with streams that are a living breathing pulse of half-a-continent. In the Southwest, rivers are strangers; the Zunis store their river just east of the pueblo at Blackrock Lake. Spend a few nights at Ojo Caliente, and you appreciate the magic of water in a barren land. When it first opened, merely driving the Alaska Highway was an adventure worth a book. Now that thousands drive it every year, it needs more than a listing of mileposts and towns along the way. Canadian author Farley Mowatt showed what boats can be in 'The Boat Who Wouldn't Float.' Gerry Spiess described the feelings of sailing a 10-foot long boat (Stone's boat is 17-feet, 9-inches long) single-handed across the Atlantic. Stone was a teacher in Zuni, New Mexico; yet, from what he wrote, it's merely a place where he went to teach Native Americans. It makes me wonder if he has ever walked outdoors during a still night and breathed in the incredible soft smokey scent of burning pinon and mesquite; or been the victim of the wonderful Zuni sense of practical jokes; attended a Shalako or Zuni Tribal Fair; or even talked to folks as they replaster their adobe buildings. This account of his trip makes me wonder if he ever stopped to smell the flowers, or whether he was just interested in earning more miles. His writing is like that of many teachers, filled to the brim with very valuable knowledge which we really should learn --- but empty of interpersonal relationships. He offers no feel of New York, the damp gray cold of the water and air, especially at the time of year he left. I couldn't find his descriptions of rowing a day, or days, in the rain. It's as though this was an accomplishment to complete, more than an adventure to live. Granted, the classic American travel stories are by Mark Twain, John Steinbeck and Jack Kerouac. In comparison, Stone merely covered miles. His students probably do much of the same thing; they get facts from him, and they give facts back to him at test-time. Then, away from the teacher's gaze, they draw and paint their feelings instead of what they are taught -- and turn out some of the finest original artwork in the Southwest. Perhaps times have just changed too much from the years when I canoed. Near the end of the book, Stone offers a chilling observation, "I've long since learned that the more expensive a boat, the less likely its captain is to wave." Perhaps we are little too money-conscious, leaving adventurers such as Stone as orphans from a time long past. If so, it would explain much of the hollowness of the book compared to times past. Stone's friendliest receptions came from professionals who make their living on the water; his warmest experiences were in the Cajun country of Louisiana; his coldest chills were on the Florida coast where multi-million dollar mansions are hollow fronts for empty hearts and closed minds. Perhaps his discovery of America in a rowboat reflects a different land that the one of 50 years ago -- a much diminished sense of purpose and place. In conclusion, it's a mildly interesting story of an incredible adventure. Most people will be astonished to learn that such a voyage is possible; Stone not only did it, but showed the experience can be entertaining as well. It sure beats driving an SUV.
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Summary: On The Water - Nathaniel Stone
Review: This is a wonderful book, providing great entertainment while also being thoughtful and reflective. It's a story of a true adventurer and a really authentic individual. I didn't want it to end. Can't imagine anyone who wouldn't enjoy it.
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Summary: well written, not a lot of action
Review: Very well written book of Nat's rowing trip around the eastern half of the country. He's a very thoughtful person, and makes observations that make you think. He does interact with people on his trip, but those encounters are not written about with the detail that make you feel you are there. Consequently I don't feel I have 'met' any of the other characters. Also, though he has a few mishaps and adventures, most of his days are spent....rowing (as you would expect). While I have no problem with this, and it gives him ample time to muse over various topics, this isn't an exciting book. But it is very well written and won't disappoint. It will surely make you jealous of the life he discovered, where time does not matter, there are no appointments and he is at peace.
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