Читать книгу Flood Moon - Chuck Radda - Страница 2

This is my Easterner's homage to the American West. A betrayal? Maybe.

I'm not maligning the coast of Maine, the dunes of Cape Cod, or the mountains of New Hampshire. But to descend Bear Tooth Pass in the summer and find pink snow, to drive north from Jackson and gasp at Grand Teton towering in the late-day sun, to amble about the top of Rendezvous Mountain shivering in July...they exert their hold on me in a different way.

And so Flood Moon and Sage, Montana.

But first, there is no Sage, Montana, unless like the fictitious Sage it lies hidden at the base of some mountain. But most of the settings in this story do, in fact, exist, from the little outpost of Kelly, Wyoming, to Mount Washington, New Hampshire. Even then the truth lies only in their geography; the license of imagination paints them differently.

At least decade ago I began this novel—a different story with different characters. Most significantly, it began in a different world but concluded in this one. It makes a difference. In 2001 I was nearing the completion of a different novel when the 9/11 attacks occurred. I put the pages away. Writing felt trivial and even petty in light of what had happened. This past year has aroused some of the same misgivings, but this time my little fictitious world, despite its failings and tragedies, has been more welcoming. I hope it will be for you too.

For guiding me through this journey I am grateful for the encouragement of the Chimney Crest Writers: David Fortier, Dawn Leger, Frank DeFrancesco, Don Paglia, Ira Morrison, and a host of others who have been part of our writing group. There were many more who shared in this journey: Mary Galiette who likes to know why and doesn’t let me off the hook; my daughter Jennifer who has a wonderful sense of tone and consistency; Tom Ward, displaced Easterner himself, who provided valuable insights into that made-up town; Cindy Satagaj-Radda who can and does verify the day-to day life of Jackson; and my brother Jim with whom I had my first first "semi-post-publication" discussion. Thanks again to Jennifer and to John Brookhouse who once more provided assistance with cover design.

Finally—thanks to my wife Deanie who has read Flood Moon more times than I have, and whose assistance sometimes fixed the little things (shouldn’t there be only one l in counselor?) and at others, mended more important glitches (How come there’s no chapter 14?) She has been meticulous, thorough, and patient—and always encouraging. Without her there would no Flood Moon.