Home At Last

About the Book

What is it like to live on an island without a bridge?  For some, the commute over Narragansett Bay by ferry is a daily reunion with island neighbors.  For others of us, piloting a small boat challenges our skills and surprises us with unexpected adventure.

Separation from daily life on the mainland breeds a unique culture.  Here on Prudence Island we have our own lingo and our island ways.  Our language is sprinkled with references to wind direction, temperature, tides and time.  

We savor night walks on the beach, a run on a dirt road, and stopping to talk to a turtle.  Kids and adults build relationships, unique friendships that leap barriers that ordinarily separate us from those who might become our friends.  

Home at Last emanates from Prudence Island –– an island without a bridge –– the place where we live.

About the Author

Josie Avery began visiting Prudence with her friend Sara Harrington and her parents in l963. In l968 her family purchased a cottage on Browns Lane. In l991, she moved here from New York City to renovate that cottage into a home. Ms. Avery received her B.A. from Marlboro College and her Ed.M. from Harvard University. She has worked in human services since l977. She lives at the house on Browns Lane with her Lab Molly. Grace Hall McEntee and her husband Matt live on Prudence Island where the beach, her home, and community provide inspiration for her writing. She has studied at Bard College, the Iowa Writers’ Festival, and Harvard University. Where Storms are Beautiful –– a personal narrative about her adventures commuting with Matt in a small boat –– was published in l993. “Prudence Island: A Place for Me” and “Rogue Wave” appeared in Rhode Island Monthly and in Boating Life.