Maybe it’s luck, or maybe we make our own luck. Either way, I have the privilege of being associated with the Palm Springs Writers Guild. There, I’ve made a few contacts and some have become customers.
One is a published author (now) and he has to his credit a book I’ve enjoyed for the past several weeks. Although I could simply read right through it, I’m savoring each chapter and every page.
I have permission from the author, Paul F. Clark, to quote directly from the text, so here you’ll see what I mean, when I say; This Victorian Woman (Mary Teagarden Clark) really knows how to tell and illustrate a story with her words.
This passage is on page 79:
“The next visitor was the children’s tall grandfather [Abraham Teagarden], who like all truly great souls, made himself a child with them. An ardent lover of flowers, he enjoyed their garden and sat for hours by the playhouse, listening to their childish chatter, for like many children, they had most vivid imaginations. And he, long in the storm and stress of life, gladly laid down his many burdens to enjoy the young life which had come to cheer his later years.”
I’ll paraphrase Bob Dylan here; “You can’t write that.” It seems like divine inspiration. Except that there are many passages just like this throughout the text. This is reason enough to take it in slowly. There are many pages of notes by the editor/author, on the historical facts that support the stories Mary Teagarden Clark tells. Hers is the memoir and the book is her great-grandson’s work of art.
I’m going to write more of this. There are many pages and paragraphs that move me, often nearly to tears, with the insight and beautiful phrasing carefully crafted to paint the picture of so many scenes. You’ll see.
This is no cliffhanger. The book; “Pioneer Ranch Life in Orange” is available from many sources.
The author, Paul F. Clark, will soon have a live website that will showcase his many talents.
For now, buy the book and enjoy a good read.