Familiar to millions of readers around the world through the pages of John Steinbeck's famous novel, Monterey's Cannery Row in California has regained national prominence with its spectacular new aquarium. Author Tom Mangelsdorf's insightful, detailed chronicle of Cannery Row delves into the fascinating history of this fabled waterfront from its beginnings as a thriving Chinese fishing community at the turn of the century through its heyday as a sardine packing capital to its present renaissance. "A History of Steinbeck's Cannery Row" provides the first comprehensive look at the growth and eventual demise of Monterey's once-flourishing sardine industry. For many years, the sardines in Monterey Bay seemed to be inexhaustible and pioneer canners like Knut Hovden and Frank Booth competed for new ways to market the silvery fish. When the supply outstripped the demand for canned sardines, the canneries turned to the manufacture of valuable byproducts like fertilizer and fish oil. Finally, after World War II, the sardines began to vanish and Cannery Row faded as a commercial venture, only to be revived in the 1970s and '80s as a mecca for tourists. Cannery Row, however, was always more than just a street of canneries. It was also what Steinbeck called, "a nostalgia, a dream." The two men who did the most to create that enduring image were novelist John Steinbeck and marine biologist Edward Ricketts, author of "Between Pacific Tides." Theirs was a unique, collaborative friendship renewed through the years even after Steinbeck became a bestselling author and national figure. While Ricketts collected specimens and investigated the delicate ecological balance of the Monterey Bay, Steinbeck collected characters for "Cannery Row." Reading back from the pages of "Cannery Row," Mangelsdorf has discovered the real-life models for many of its fictional denizens. There was Flora Woods, who became Steinbeck's Dora Flood, the amiable madam of Cannery Row; Grant McLean and his carousing friends, familiar as Mack and the boys; Eddie Romero, the colorful paisano known as Pilon and, of course, Ricketts himself, who achieved lasting fame as "Doc." Mangelsdorf's extensive study adds both to our knowledge of how natural resources are exploited and sheds new light on two remarkable artists. The Monterey Bay Aquarium initiates a new era dedicated to the preservation of our marine treasures, and the author concludes with a special chapter about its conception and construction.

In the beginning --Over there -- After the war -- The jazz age -- The people of the Row -- The floater decade -- The Depression -- The New Deal -- We do our part -- Blood, toil, tears, and sweat -- Sea of Cortez to Cannery Row -- Cannery Row -- Cannery Row to the outer shores -- How bad is it? -- Act two.