Memory Layne: Catawba Island to Chincoteague Island

With his white beard and red suspenders, his salty good humor, harmonica, and bucket of tall tales, Zeke Layne is one of those memorable characters you can still occasionally find - whether it be a Chincoteague Island waterman or retired Cape Cod fisherman or charter boat skipper in the Florida Keys, or in the case of Memory Layne, Bob Adamov’s poignant word portrait, a former Miller ferry boat captain on Lake Erie.

Zeke lives with his daughter, teenage granddaughter and golden lab in an old mobile home, built on steel pilings at the Miller Ferry Catawba dock, with a view from his deck of South Bass Island. Alzheimer’s and a worrisome heart condition haven’t stopped him from his daily routine of entertaining passengers waiting at the Catawba dock to board the ferry or caring for his Chincoteague pony. It’s not a bad life, even having to deal with two rapacious stepdaughters and their biker pals.

But when the unthinkable happens, Zeke must summon all his fading resources in a madcap dash to a safe haven. Adamov populates his story with a cast of unforgettable characters who teach us about the power of love, and prove, as Hemingway once said, that man can be destroyed, but not defeated. Memory Layne is a thoroughly enjoyable read! - Paul Kemprecos, New York Times best-selling author