I. NOVEL TWO
So… BIG news… My second novel is out! It’s called Something, but I suppose it could have been titled Fear and Uncertainty Experienced as Jimbo Grows Up in a Strange Family, Rides a Long Bike Tour, and Chases an Ornery Runaway Dog. I decided to stick with Something. Here’s an excerpt…
Prologue: Thieves of Peace
I’m nine. It’s the summer of 1969.
I hear a knock at the front door of our little suburban starter shack in Corpus Christi, Texas. Since my dad is still at work — it’s midafternoon in our simmering city by the Gulf — and little sister and Mom are taking a nap, I’m the only one in the house awake.
I open the main door… a thick, sturdy, wooden slab… and look through the unlocked screen door. A man looks in at me.
“Son, are your folks home?”
He’s a beefy fellow — taller than my dad, who’s six-one — but seems respectable enough, in my nine-year-old opinion.
Got a white shirt and tie on, doesn’t he? A little sloppy, and his shirt’s coming out in places at the waist. But his hair’s short… and he’s wearing black horn rims, just like you.
Doesn’t look like any long-haired, LSD-injecting criminal you’ve ever seen on a TV show…
How bad can he be?
“Just my mom. She’s asleep. Dad’s at work.” I look up at his unsmiling, but clean-shaven face. He reminds me of those bland character actors who guest star every now and then on Hawaii Five-O — one of my favorite shows.
Book ‘em, Danno!
Wait… Those bland-looking guys always end up being psychotic!
I look closely at Mr. Sloppy Necktie.
Nah, looks harmless.
“Young man, could you go get your mother for me?”
“Okay.”
I leave him at the door and go back to my parent’s bedroom.
*****
“Hey, Mom.” I shook her shoulder. She had a pretty good snooze going, face completely relaxed, snoring lightly. I suppose she was tired most of the time, with all the housework and taking care of the two of us kids.
“Mom. There’s a man at the front door.”
Her eyes snapped open at that, then rotated toward me and narrowed, her face forming a frown.
Guess the nap’s over…
“What did you say?”
“I said there’s a guy at the door. He said he wants to talk to you.”
She jumped up and headed quickly to the front of the house. I followed. My sister was still asleep on the other side of my parents’ bed.
Before my mom got to the front room, she put her face near mine and said in an urgent and ominously quiet voice, “Stay here.” So I did.
Interested in more? Here’s the Amazon link:
II. BOOKS I’M READING
I’m currently reading Chaim Potok’s In the Beginning, Ty Tashiro’s Awkward, and Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar. As soon as the dust settles from an intense May (see below), you can expect reviews from one or more of the aforementioned books. Spoiler alert: I like all three of them.
III. THE MERRILY INTENSE MONTH OF MAY
Tons of exciting things are happening in my piece of the universe, and all during a compressed, less-than-a-month period…
- The publication of Something
- My 35th wedding anniversary!
- The birth of my second grandchild, Olivia Rose!!
- Exciting new job prospects (No. They aren’t going to keep me from continuing to write.)
It’s all good, but it’s worn me out. In fact, I feel like taking a nap right now.
IV. MOVIE RECOMMENDATION
(I didn’t take a nap.)
If you’re a poet and/or love reading poetry and/or love a good love story, you should watch Paterson, starring Adam Driver and Golshifteh Farahani, written and directed by Jim Jarmusch. The romantic type? You’ll love it. A cynical, old fart? Force yourself to watch Paterson (…you can secretly enjoy it and no one will be the wiser). Here’s a link for more info:
V. REVIEWS OF THE EXTRA KEY BY KIRKUS AND AMY’S LIBRARY RAMBLES
Both of these review sites had nice things to say about my first novel, The Extra Key. Here are the links:
https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/kevin-polman/extra-key/
https://amyslibraryrambles.wordpress.com/tag/kevin-polman/
VI. IN CLOSING
Stuj a ytin lepzuz hist thomn. Mi teba!
kevinpolman 