January Newsletter
Stories and News From Magic Hill
January 2019 Vol.2, Issue 10
My New Year’s resolutions are just that… high hopes for a resolution to the bipolar weather patterns we’ve been having, hopefully in a gentle and luxurious blanket of snow; a resolution to the chaos in the White House that welcomes back wisdom, truth, and compassion in our leaders; a resolution to the economic centrifuge that expels more and more of us from the security of employment and independence: and finally, a resolution to the battle between consumerism and greed, and stewardship of our natural resources. Many of us have children and grandchildren.
Love to all,
Bill
Priest Final Cover
My new novel The Priest will be shipping to bookstores and online venues January 15th. I hope you’ll pick up a copy and give it a read. The Priest follows a working class altar boy’s decision to become a priest, exploring the struggle many boys have becoming men, especially around sexuality. Pierre finds safety within the vocational confines and celibacy of his Catholic faith, only then to be astonished as he experiences life vicariously in the shadow of the confessional. Ultimately, he must confront his own emerging sexuality in the real world and reconcile the inevitable collision between the security of doctrine and the risks of being human – all of which takes him to a surprising place.
Vermont Writer Book Recommendation
I just read a marvelous tale by Hardwick, VT author Daphne Kalmar. It’s a book for young and old alike called A Stitch in Time. Like the very best of children’s literature, it doesn’t treat the reader like a child, but rather like a real person in a complex world, reminiscent of my favorite author in this genre, Katherine Paterson. I cannot recommend this book highly enough. I couldn’t put it down and am giving my copy to my 10-year old granddaughter for Christmas. Don’t miss it.
What I’m Reading Now
From time to time, I return to the very few books in my life that haunt the bookshelf in my psyche – the unforgettables. I’m re-reading Gabriel Garcia Marquez Love in the Time of Cholera. Cholera is not only a disease, it’s also a variant of the word “colere” – how one feels when they believe someone has behaved unfairly or cruelly toward them. I won’t tease you with its magical realism plot. I’ll just recommend you read any Marquez novel or novella as soon as you can.
What is this tool?
A Chinese padlock I bought for a few yuan while on our honeymoon in Beijing in 1996. It was in a display of junk a little old lady was selling on the sidewalk. The long metal piece beside it is the key.
A favorite thing
The holidays (and the rest of the year) always brings the joy of an almost unlimited supply of Bien Fait Cakes from Greensboro, Vermont. The company was started by dear friends Bill and Trish Alley as a way of bringing more opportunity to the folks in the Greensboro area. They donate all their profits, “..as our hearts and consciences dictate,” specifically to local groups that assist folks with the basics – food, heat, electricity, and children’s and elder’s programs in the community. They are all made in house from ingredients that they prepare individually and they’re delicious. Try some and be delighted.
Please support your local bookstores!
I love hearing from new folks, so please feel free to forward my newsletter to your friends and family! –Bill
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