Great Summer "Companion" Reads on Sanibel

It's that time of year when those of us heading to the beach are looking for a good companion.

Books make great companions, or at least their authors and characters do. Maybe they don't communicate with us, but they do communicate to us.

And, on Sanibel, as with all travels, it's a nice environmental enhancement to have a good read that really makes you not only know, but feel the place.

Anyone with a yen for a good book that helps to put them on the Island has several choices.

There are dozens of great reads out there by the now famous Randy Wayne White. White, who began his literary career as Randy Striker and also used the nom de plume of Carl Ramm, has brought to life a very interesting literary character by the name of Doc Ford. Doc is an ex-NSA officer that has returned home to SW Florida to start a new life. He is a marine biologist (his front while being an NSA operative) and the owner of the one man operation Sanibel Biological Supply. He lives in an old stilt house on fictional Dinkins Bay that also serves as his lab. Close by, at Dinkins Bay Marina, are his neighbors and friends. And, it's nice that the Island has paid homage to Doc Ford in having a really delightful eatery in his name.

Doc is an interesting guy and has been featured in 16 novels by White who is every bit as interesting as his Doc character and worth knowing about before you plunge into his writing. White has traveled extensively and participated in a wide variety of adventures, including dog sledding in Alaska, helping to re-establish Little League baseball in Cuba, and ferrying Cuban refugees to safety during the Mariel boatlift. His writing certainly reflects his spirit of adventure, a helpful background in knowing he is not just an armchair traveler.

Lesser known, but arguably no less talented, Christine Lemmon writes about Sanibel in a way that is provocative and inspiring. Her two novels based on life on Sanibel, Sanibel Scribbles and Portion of the Sea will put you on Island where ever you are. A Sanibel resident, Lemmon also had an interesting background with her loving family who moved about and lived life out of the box.

If you are not the fiction reading type, there are many great books that are based on actual events and history. One of these, renowned for its poetry of language and insightfulness is A Gift From the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh. Anne Morrow Lindbergh, the widow of aviator and conservationist Charles A. Lindbergh, Jr., was a noted writer and aviation pioneer.

Her novel, written on Captiva, A Gift From the Sea, has transcended generations and inspired millions. Her words, written at Gulf side, present a calm vision "...I want first of all...to be at peace with myself. I want a singleness of eye, a purity of intention, a central core to my life that will enable me to carry out these obligations and activities as well as I can. I want, in fact - to borrow from the language of the saints - to live "in grace" as much of the time as possible...By grace I mean an inner harmony, essentially spiritual, which can be translated into outward harmony...I would like to achieve a state of inner spiritual grace from which I could function and give as I was meant to in the eye of God..."

Are you looking for a calm introspection on your Sanibel beach blanket? Then take Lindbergh or Lemmon with you!

And if you want more action than thought, grab Randy White!

Whoever you choose, you will not be alone and your beach experience will be the best one yet.