Bay View, An American Idea is a history of Bay View, a Chautauqua community in Northern Michigan. It includes stories about Ernest Hemingway's connection to the community, the visit of the Custer family after The Battle of The Little Bighorn, and how Irma Rombauer came to write The Joy of Cooking. Of great interest is the newspaper accounts by the Great Unitarian Paul B. Blanshard and Philosopher Brand Blanshard of their early life in Petoskey and Bay View, as well as the author's account of the women's movement in Petoskey and Bay View.

Mary Jane Doerr