My River Chronicles, Jessica DuLong
My River Chronicles, Jessica DuLong
1 Rating(s)
List: $17.99 | Sale: $12.59
Club: $8.99

My River Chronicles
Rediscovering America on the Hudson

Author: Jessica DuLong

Narrator: Jessica Dulong

Unabridged: 10 hr 5 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 11/02/2009


Synopsis

In 2001, journalist Jessica DuLong ditched her dot-com desk job for the diesel engines of a rusty antique fireboat, the John J. Harvey, and the storied waters of the Hudson. My River Chronicles: Rediscovering America on the Hudson tells the story of this mechanic's daughter and Stanford graduate who had left her blue-collar upbringing behind until the fireboat drew her back, offering a chance to become an engineer and a taste of home she hadn't realized she was missing.

The more time DuLong spent toiling in the engine room, running the boat's finely crafted machinery, the more she wondered what America is losing in our shift away from hands-on work. These questions crystallized in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, attacks, when the FDNY called the retired fireboat back into service, and DuLong and the rest of the boat's civilian crew pumped water to fight blazes at Ground Zero. As blue-collar workers clambered on the pile, DuLong was struck by the dignity of physical labor and the honor of having joined the world of skilled labor whose talents were useful at the site.

DuLong brings her two worlds vibrantly to life in this beautifully written memoir that evokes the vitality of New York City's bygone working waterfront and the Hudson River, a birthplace of American industry. Blending four centuries of Hudson River history with unforgettable present-day characters and events, DuLong offers a porthole-view narrative of the river and its social tapestry as a microcosm of postindustrial America. As she tracks changes along the shoreline, where industrial sites give way to recreational respites, a celebration of American labor and craftsmanship emerges. While searching along the river's edge for the meaning of work in America, DuLong pays homage to our industrial past and raises important questions about the future at this pivotal moment in our national story.

My River Chronicles is a journey with an extraordinary guide, a woman who bridges blue-collar and white-collar worlds and turns a phrase as deftly as she does a wrench. Soulful and illuminating, My River Chronicles is a deeply personal story of a unique woman's discovery of her own roots—and America's—as she runs the fireboat's diesels on the ever-changing river that flows both ways.

About Jessica DuLong

Jessica DuLong, a U.S. Coast Guard-licensed merchant marine officer, is one of the world's only female fireboat engineers. She is also a journalist whose work has appeared in Newsweek International, Rolling Stone, Psychology Today, Parenting, Today's Machining World, Maritime Reporter & Engineering News, and other publications. She and her crewmates on the New York City fireboat John J. Harvey were recognized in the Congressional Record following their service pumping water to firefighters at Ground Zero after the 9/11 attacks and were featured as characters in New Yorker illustrator Maira Kalman's award-winning children's book Fireboat: The Heroic Adventures of the John J. Harvey.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Jim on June 04, 2018

After reading the first 12 chapters of the book, I was prepared to award it 5 stars--then I got to the last four chapters, and it was like reading 2 different books. For example, the author spent a lot of time discussing a year-long attempt to repair the fire boat, but when the ship breaks down just......more

Goodreads review by Jeanne on August 31, 2020

A fascinating book on the john J. Harvey, a retired fire boat in NYC, used to save people after 9/11. Lots of history of boats, the Hudson River, women in a "mans" world. I recommend it highly. 9th Retirement Readaloud.......more

Goodreads review by Dennis on September 13, 2021

Displaced web designer tells of her journey from world of web design to life in the Hudson River and its history. She also speaks of importance of manual labor.......more

Goodreads review by Stephen on October 19, 2009

Very interesting book. There were quite a few facets of the book that I enjoyed or found fascinating: - The history of the Hudson River and its' importance as a trade route, a line of defense against the British, and growth of Industry in the United States' early stages. - The authors' feelings of los......more

Goodreads review by Ben on March 12, 2014

A thoroughly enjoyable memoir about one woman's path from website engineer to fireboat engineer, and much more. This book includes lengthy exploration of the history of the Hudson River, the port of New York, and of boating in New York in general, as well as a veritable treatise on old work boat mec......more