CAMDEN — Author Jim Witherell will visit the Camden Public Library on Tuesday evening, Oct. 7, to talk about Ed Muskie and about his new biography, Ed Muskie: Made in Maine. The talk is part of the library's history lecture series in October.

The arc of Edmund "Ed" Muskie's life from modest beginnings to future greatness was singular and unpredictable — an American story that looks plausible only in hindsight. Commemorating the 100th anniversary of Muskie's birth on March 28, 1914, the biography traces his life and career through his two terms as governor of Maine.

Born in a mill town in Maine's western foothills, Muskie seemed to have understood from boyhood that he had another destiny to fulfill. He was a Roman Catholic among Protestants and a Democrat in a state so dominated by Republicans that, he used to joke, the Democrats in Maine could caucus in a phone booth. His aspirations for higher office in postwar Maine seemed unrealistic, yet he became the state's first Democratic governor in 20 years — and only the second since World War I — while rebuilding Maine's Democratic Party along the way.

"Nothing surpasses what Ed Muskie did to protect America's natural environment. It's one thing to write and pass a law. It's another thing to change the way people live. It's yet another and quite difficult thing to change how people think. Ed Muskie did that. Before it was a national cause or even well known, environmental protection was Ed Muskie's passion. Any Maine citizen who wants to appreciate what Ed Muskie did need only drive to the nearest river." — Senator George Mitchell

"I've always been fascinated with Ed Muskie and how this son of an immigrant tailor from rural Maine rose to national and international leadership. This important book provides hugely valuable insights into that question and paints a rich portrait of one of the great leaders of the twentieth century."—Senator Angus King

Jim Witherell was born in Rumford (Ed Muskie's hometown). After serving three years in the army, he attended the University of Maine, earning degrees in English and psychology. He began writing in 1999 and is the author of Bicycle History, L.L. Bean: The Man and His Company, and When Heroes Were Giants: 100 Tours de France.

A resident of Lewiston, Jim is a master Maine guide and an avid cyclist.