Ghost Buck

Dean Bennett, a lifelong Maine resident, went on his first hunting trip to his family’s Camp Sheepskin at the age of three and has spent each hunting season since at the camp. Bennett has been a cabinetmaker, curriculum developer, education program evaluator, college professor, and author. An advocate for the environment, Bennett names deer hunting as a pastime, and simultaneously has stressed the importance of environmental ethics while serving on various environmental organizations over his lifetime. He lives in Hallowell, Maine, with his wife, biologist Sheila K. Bennett. Ghost Buck: The Legacy of One Man’s Family and its Hunting Traditions is his tenth book.

"Maine outdoorsman, educator, and environmentalist Dean Bennett is well-known for his lucid writing and strong positions on environmental ethics and wilderness conservation. He is also an avid deer hunter . . . with Ghost Buck, Bennett's writing takes a more personal direction . . . that vividly and respectfully describes 'the simple pleasure of connecting with yourself, with others and with a certain place in nature, and with one of its creatures of grace and beauty." 
––Bill Bushnell, Central Maine Newspapers

"Dean used his family’s camp register, photos, and letters from the 1880s to today, to write this wonderful book that is sure to trigger your own memories, whether or not you have your own family camp . . . you don’t have to be a hunter to enjoy this book. It’s a real treasure."
––George Smith, Bangor Daily News (George's Outdoor News) 
 

On the surface, Ghost Buck is purely about generations of the Bennett family gathering every fall to hunt deer. But peer deeper, and you’ll find a family that has not let the uncertainties of life (war, sickness, hard times, distance) hinder their cherished traditions. Even if you are opposed to hunting for sport (“I’m not a trophy hunter” the author affirms), Ghost Buck will draw you in, making you feel like one of the Bennett family. And you just may find yourself thinking of your own family and its traditions and how to keep them going for generations to come.
––James M. Fisher, The Miramichi Reader
 

"When his [Dean Bennett's] prose takes you through the woods surrounding Camp Sheepskin, you can smell the bog. You can hear the deer blow. You can see the thick snow that blankets the woods."
––John Holyoke, Bangor Daily News
 

“This is a book for our time and will be enjoyed and treasured far into the future. . . Bennett’s prose unfolds the centuries with ease and with the clarity of a master historian. . . The book is honest and documents not only one family’s experience but an element of Maine life through the generations.”
––William David Berry, Portland Press Herald