Heading Out to Wonderful

With a slow pace that sounds like he's savoring each word, Norman Dietz tells the post-WWII story of Charlie Beale, a drifter who arrives in the sleepy town of Brownsburg, Virginia, and decides to stay. Although the townspeople are wary of strangers, Charlie wins them over--along with the local butcher, his wife, and his 5-year-old son, Sam. Dietz's calm style adds to the sensuous descriptions while still creating the feeling that something bad is going to happen. The listener, lulled by Dietz's tender voice, will feel the horror of the plot's climax as strongly as young Sam and the people of Brownsburg. M.M.G. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine


With a slow pace that sounds like he's savoring each word, Norman Dietz tells the post-WWII story of Charlie Beale, a drifter who arrives in the sleepy town of Brownsburg, Virginia, and decides to stay. Although the townspeople are wary of strangers, Charlie wins them over--along with the local butcher, his wife, and his 5-year-old son, Sam. Dietz's calm style adds to the sensuous descriptions while still creating the feeling that something bad is going to happen. The listener, lulled by Dietz's tender voice, will feel the horror of the plot's climax as strongly as young Sam and the people of Brownsburg. M.M.G. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine

February 27, 2012
Goolrick’s tale of doomed love resonates like a folk ballad, with the language of the Blue Ridge Mountains and its people giving this novel its soul. Just after WWII, 39-year-old veteran Charlie Beale arrives in smalltown Brownsburg, Va., hoping for a brighter future. He offers his services to the local butcher, Will Haislett, and works his way into the good graces of Haislett’s family, especially five-year-old Sam. But even as Charlie finds acceptance, he remains apart in Brownsburg: he attends services in every church before finally finding redemption in an African-American Episcopal service; he buys up more land than he needs; and he makes a big mistake by falling for Sylvan Glass, the young wife of wealthy, old, vulgar Harrison Glass, who bought Sylvan at 17 “like a head of cattle.” Sylvan, an outsider like Charlie, dreams of Hollywood, while Charlie simply yearns for a place to call home. Goolrick (A Reliable Wife) tells their story from multiple perspectives, most poignantly that of Sam’s, a boy trying to make sense of the unfolding tragedy. Like any good ballad, the narrative builds slowly to its violent climax, packs an emotional punch, and then haunts readers with its quintessentially American refrain. Agent: Lynn Nesbit, Janklow & Nesbit Associates.