Review of Doug Aldersons Simon’s Wondrous Garden by Roberta Burton Have you ever picked up a book and felt an immediate connection with the protagonist? This happened when I met attorney Simon McCallister, who awakens in the hospital with a foggy memory of his auto accident and the beginning of visitations by his deceased grandfather, which cause him to reevaluate his life. His childhood memories of life on his grandfather’s farm awaken a desire to grow things. Instead of returning to work at his prestigious law firm, Simon digs up his manicured lawn in an upscale subdivision, much to the consternation of family, neighbors, and colleagues. Throughout this story, Alderson connects this reader with the sacredness of the relationships between all creatures and the land. Included in this gem of southern fiction is a tale about a Creek Indian who returns to the homeland of his ancestors only to find an event honoring the man responsible for the forced marches of his people to a then unknown destination; an unlikely pairing of a northern retiree and a cranky mullet fisherman; a narration about a man, who through a series of misfortunes finds himself on the streets with only one person he trusts; and, a rowboat trip down north Florida’s Wacissa River Slave Canal by a former slave and his granddaughter. “Simon’s Wondrous Garden” is a third place winner of the Royal Palm Literary Award from the Florida Writers Association and the featured story in Doug Alderson’s book, Simon’s Wondrous Garden. “Slave Canal” is a second place winner of the Seven Hills literary award for short stories. If you have an affinity for this globe and all its inhabitants, an interest in how we humans grapple with our lives in order to make them better, Simon’s Wondrous Garden is for you. If you are simply interested in reading about those sacred places in this area, you will find Alderson to be a superb southern writer. His nonfiction books are equally as enchanting. When I read Alderson’s work, I come away with new eyes. Alderson has several book signings in the near future: Saturday May 10th, from 2-4 p.m. at the Bay Leaf Market in Crawfordville, Thursday June 12, at 7 p.m. at the Monticello Library, and Saturday July 12, from 11-1 at My Favorite Books in Tallahassee Be sure to catch one of them if you’d like a signed edition. Roberta Burton has a masters and doctorate degree from FSU. She recently completed her first novel and has plans to start a second one. “For me, writing is not a choice. I must write,” she says.
Posted on: Wed, 07 May 2014 15:23:45 +0000
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