Each spring we share a list of alumni-authored books that have been published or brought to our attention in the previous year. This year, to find out more about the books and their authors, we asked each writer to answer two questions, and all of them kindly obliged. 

Rick Carey ’69

Philosopher Fish: Sturgeon, Caviar, and the Geography of Desire (new edition)

IMPRESSION: Capitalism, for all its virtues, is not good at the practice of sustainability with the natural resources that feed it. A sturgeon is a remarkable fish that people know too little about. But we all know its eggs are crucial to a prized and expensive delicacy. These eggs must be taken before the female has ovulated, however, which in practice means that the female must be killed. This also means that the profit motive driving those who catch sturgeon, and those who produce and sell caviar, operates at dramatic cross-purposes to those who wish to study the fish, to sustain it as a species, to defend this planet’s biodiversity. 

The Philosopher Fish is an adventure story. We go behind the lines, getting to know the merchants, fishermen, poachers, and smugglers trying to get rich in the business of caviar, and also the scientists, conservationists, and law-enforcement personnel out to save the fish. It tends towards black-and-white, but there are shades of grey.

It’s also a modern fairy tale, a new retelling of “The Goose That Laid the Golden Egg.” I hope readers come away knowing what’s at stake as we measure the earth against our desires.

INSPIRATION: I was drawn to this subject after I finished Against the Tide, my story about Cape Codders trying to reconcile profit versus sustainability in the commercial fishing industry. Another way to express that conflict — from a consumer’s perspective — is in terms of desire versus discipline, and the caviar industry struck me as a fiendish example of that binary.

If you fish cod down low enough, prices go up enough for consumers to look elsewhere. Demand falls, fishing pressure relaxes, stocks rebuild. With caviar, however, consumers don’t look elsewhere. This product is a perfect instance of a Veblen good, a commodity where scarcity and expense only increase demand.

Caviar is wonderful, but it’s a luxury beloved of oligarchs eager to flaunt their wealth. Such wealth keeps the wheels turning and sustains the slaughter. Some of the most interesting people I met, however, were the legitimate merchants who are as ardent as any conservationist for the survival of the sturgeon. 

They suffer this conundrum internally, dreaming of a world safe for both caviar and the female sturgeon. My book describes our struggle towards such a world. If we can’t get there from here, it’s a bad sign for cod as well — and for us all.

Scott Wallace ’72

Central America in the Crosshairs of War: On the Road from Vietnam to Iraq

IMPRESSION: I hope my readers will reflect on the astonishing disparity between official pronouncements and what reality looks like and feels like on the ground. From the early days of my career, I learned that the most accurate information comes from going into the field where events are unfolding and listening to the people caught up in the drama. In my book, I seek to bring all my abilities as a storyteller and visual journalist to bear in recreating moments of beauty, tension, and lasting significance. I think readers will put this book down and say to themselves, “Wow, I never thought of that before.” 

INSPIRATION: I decided to go to El Salvador straight out of journalism school in the early 1980s. It was a risky choice, going as a freelancer into a country in the midst of a bloody civil war. I remained in Central America for seven years, eventually moving my base to Nicaragua and, later, Guatemala. I developed a rich trove of stories and images from the frontlines of all three conflicts that I wanted to share, first of all, because they’re great stories, but also because of their contemporary relevance to issues ranging from the immigration crisis to the importance of on-the-ground journalism as a counterweight to propaganda, disinformation, and deception. 

Geoffrey Wawro ’78

The Vietnam War: A Military History

IMPRESSION: Clarity and surprise. The origins and conduct of the Vietnam War across five presidential administrations — Ike, JFK, LBJ, Nixon, and Ford — are so muddy and disputed that a book was needed to explain the war in all dimensions — military, political, economic, and cultural. The book assembles the disconnected operations of the war into a coherent narrative and puts the reader in the shoes of the troops. It shifts back and forth between Vietnam and Washington, revealing what a “political” war Vietnam was.

INSPIRATION: I grew up with the Vietnam War as background noise. It was on television and in the newspapers when I was a child, and very much on the mind of my older brothers and their peers. As a historian I wanted to understand how and why the war was conceived and waged for 10 fruitless years. I wanted to answer the question: “How did we win every battle and lose the war?”

Dax Hassell ’90

Tears in Rain (poetry collection)

IMPRESSION: This collection invites readers to embrace often unnoticed moments of beauty, sorrow, and being. Poems and photographs work together as glimpses into passing instants — fragile, self-contained worlds that exist only for a breath before dissolving into memory.

INSPIRATION: The inspiration behind these poems comes from the fleeting nature of existence and the search for significance in impermanence. Existentialism and absurdism shape the writing, reflecting on what it means to exist when nothing lasts.

Tina Kinney Clarke ’91

Into the Tree: Journeying into the Spirit World

IMPRESSION: Readers will gain profound insight into the transformative power of shamanic journeying — a guided meditation practice that unlocks hidden realms of wisdom, healing, and self-discovery. This immersive experience offers a gateway to deep transformation, clarity, and answers to life’s most profound questions.  

INSPIRATION: Becoming a published author has always been a dream of mine, and I knew I had a powerful message to share. With over a decade of experience in shamanic healing, I felt called to bring this transformative practice to a wider audience. I realized that while many books discuss shamanic journeying, few truly capture the essence of the experience — what it feels like, the wisdom it reveals, and the profound transformations it ignites. Inspired by this gap, I set out to create a book that brings the magic of journeying to life, guiding readers into unseen realms of healing and self-discovery.

Scott Rothman ’92

Warm and Fuzzy and
Kittybunkport

IMPRESSION: I would love for my readers — both young and old — to have felt like they had fun, laughed a little, or maybe even a lot, and can’t wait to read both books all over again.

INSPIRATION: For Warm and Fuzzy, I was inspired by my love of imagination and my many real and imagined fears about going on adventures of any kind. For Kittybunkport, it’s easy. While we were on a summer vacation in Kennebunkport, Maine, my youngest son, Maxwell, said it would be funny if the town was actually called Kittybunkport and was run entirely by cats. The book basically just wrote itself after that. 

Chris Vola ’03

The Cocktail Atlas: Around the World in 200+ Drinks

IMPRESSION: Any book claiming to thoroughly investigate spirits culture, especially one describing itself as a global drinks atlas, needs to have a deep respect for the far-flung nations it describes and the local flavors that define them. When choosing cocktail recipes for the 195 countries featured in The Cocktail Atlas, I’ve taken great care to ensure that these drinks accurately reflect both the history and modern-day essence of each specific locale. I’m hoping that readers come away with that same sense of appreciation for humanity’s constantly shifting liquid landscape, that they’ll discover new spirits and ingredients that they otherwise wouldn’t have, and, most importantly, that everyone from cocktail newbies to seasoned bartenders will be able to whip up some new favorite drinks at home, regardless of any previous experience. 

INSPIRATION: As a child, I was always a huge geography nerd, spending hours at home or in the library scouring giant books of maps … and dreaming of being able to take in all of it firsthand. In the past decade or so, I’ve been fortunate enough to travel to some fascinating spots, from the High Arctic to the Nepalese jungle, further adding to my appreciation for far-off places and, as a longtime spirits writer and bartender, their diverse drinking cultures. It was a no-brainer for me to combine these two passions in book form. While doing research, I noticed that, while there were cocktail books with international elements, none were comprehensive enough to include drinks from every country. Finding or crafting more than 200 cocktails inspired by local ingredients was a challenge, one that took me out of my comfort zone but also greatly expanded my repertoire, allowing me to showcase underappreciated spirits while paying proper homage to all-time classics. And I hope that love comes through both in the writing and in the gorgeous maps and illustrations found throughout the book.