Marsh, Mudflats, and Mallards

About the Book

Part memoir, part commentary, this is a story of a group of men who go for a week-long hunting trip on Virginia’s Eastern Shore, one of America´s last unspoiled wilderness areas. At the age of 78, Charles, a retired lawyer, was the old timer of the group. His son, Henry, and nephew, Curt, were computer programmers who now lived across the bay. Rounding out the group were Bud, a farmer, and Jimmy, a seafood wholesaler. Staying in a rustic building once used as a watch house, they go hunting, hike, cook, play cards, eat, drink, and gaze at the stars. They meet up with watermen, errant teenagers, and a group of yachting high-tech millionaires visiting the area for the first time. They discuss their careers, their pasts, and the uncertain future of the area, which is threatened by rapid development.

About the Author

Born and raised on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, George Mapp attended college at William and Mary and the University of Southern Mississippi. He worked as a farm laborer, store clerk, substitute teacher, waiter, construction worker, gas station attendant, short-order cook, house painter, bag-boy, service station attendant, and lab technician before finally finding a cushy job as a computer programmer. In that capacity he has worked for the Navy, the EPA, a large bank, a state employment commission, and a pharmaceutical company. He now lives in Durham, NC, with his wife and son.