The author is a direct descendent of the adventurous Baron Jean-Vincent d'Abbadie de Saint-Castin (immortalized by Longfellow) and Pidianiske, daughter of Penobscot Chief Madockawando. Feted as a veteran of the liberation of Europe, Charles Shay unexpectedly finds himself in the footsteps of his French ancestry, being received in Basque villages, in the region of Castine. From Castine, Maine, and Indian Island on the Penobscot River to the beaches of Normandy and beyond, cross-cultural connections are discovered along with memories of living history.
With 184 illustrations and documents of being received in French towns and in ceremonies on two continents we are provided with an historic insight into the life of a Penobscot veteran of WWII and Korea.