Peggy
Rembach is a newer author on the scene who has received some accolades in the
New England market with two Massachusetts Individual Artist Grant awards and a
strong teaching pedigree in the fields of Corrections, Health Care, and Medical
Humanities. As well, she has taught
Creative Writing at Chatham University and for the University of New
Hampshire's graduate programs. Residing
in Northeastern Massachusetts, she wrote the book I had the pleasure of
previewing for you called The Lons. It is not Peggy's first effort, but it is
her first in some time as her last book, Fighting Gravity, was published
thirteen years ago.
The
Lons is a story that centers around the discovery of a mysterious set of
lifeforms growing in the watermelon fields of a farmer named Leonard
Slinket. Slinket is a man who leads a
solitary life and when he happens upon the strange wiffle ball-sized shapes
growing in the place of his watermelons, he is at once bewildered and
frustrated by their lack of growth. But
he quickly senses that there is more to these 'lons (as Leonard likes to call
his crop) than meets the eye. Leonard's
mundane and paint-by-numbers life has just been given new meaning with his
quest to solve the enigma of the lon's origin and the reason for their presence
on his property.
Adding
particular complication is the uneasy friendship Leonard has with younger and
more extroverted friend, John Bigby.
When Leonard brings John in on his secret, a clash of philosophy
immediately sets a chain of events into motion that will change both their
worlds possibly forever. John's romantic
interest, Lydia Rice, is a science teacher who also lends her help to solving
the great mystery before them, but at what cost?
Rambach's
story runs 123 pages, and readers who pick up the book will find themselves
with a story that is brief enough to be fit into a busy and active lifestyle,
but not so brief to be left wanting. Her
writing style will be a pleasure for those readers who enjoy highly descriptive
prose. Her lengthy sentences might cause
some casual or distracted readers to go back and look again at what they read,
losing themselves in the detail. There
is no doubt that Rambach's style is to flesh out her character's thoughts and
environment as vividly as possible.
Peggy Rambach, author, undated photo
Artist
Pat Keck provides the front cover of the book, which features the transfixed
visage of Leonard Slinket holding one of the lons, which is not in proportion
to the lons that actually inhabit Rambach's story, but was undoubtedly done to
inspire a more impactful visual effect.
The image, too, might lead one to believe that the story may be more
directed towards a younger audience, but this is decidedly not the case after
having read her work. The story is
certainly adult in theme, without being crass or inappropriate for a less
mature audience.
If
you are in the market for a new author, you could do far worse than picking up
a copy of The Lons. As a fan of short
stories and novellas, that allow for a more streamlined reading experience,
Rambach provides a nice option when the demands of life and responsibility may
not accommodate another Stephen King or Tom Clancy style epic. And her detailed prose will leave you with no
uncertain impression of the characters and the world they reside.
-
Chris (for the Great Stories team)
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