Quote for the day: "Mackinac Bridge paved a way into the rambunctious Northwoods, not into a polite little metropolitan park with a bowl of goldfish in the middle." William Ratigan. Straits of Mackinac. 1959.
Reviews
Dark Straits: Sudden Quiet: Book ll by Joshua Veith
It would be easy to label this second volume in the Sudden Quiet trilogy, and the trilogy itself, as dystopian. Yes, the world's population has nearly been wiped off the face of the earth by a virulent virous that destroyed civilization and left the few remaining survivors doing what humans do best, coming to blows. The survivors are divided into three main groups that were introduced in volume one. The Hidden have done just that. They have isolated themselves like the group on Michigan's Beaver Island and killed anyone trying to reach the island. The Spreaders are infected by the virous. It doesn't kill them it turns them into spreaders of the virous, and murderous killers set on conquering what's left of humanity. And then there's the Naturals who believe a strong bond with Mother Earth can save humanity and have developed exceptional abilities to prove it.
In volume one a scouting party from Beaver Island explored the Charlevoix area and discovered a group of Naturals that are being hunted by Spreaders. The Beaver Islanders help the group escape their pursuers; then hijack the Beaver Island ferry and help the Naturals resettle on Beaver Island. In the second volume the Spreaders have regrouped and recruited fringe groups to join them in a campaign to subjugate the U.P. Various Natural groups including Indigenous Natives recruit the Beaver Islanders to join them in stopping the Spreaders at what will become the battle for the Mackinac Bridge. The above is only a broad outline of this unique novel that takes readers down odd, intriguing, and entertaining sub plots. A 60-page monologue by the ego crazed leader of the Spreaders was initially irritating but I slowly came to find the man's total repugnance and hugely overrated self-worth both somewhat amusing and all too real.
The author has a unique way with words. I was constantly wowed by sentence structure, choice of words, and pleasing turns of phrase like this comment on a Maple tree, "sweetening sunlight into sugar." If this is a dystopian novel it also leans heavily on mysticism, fantasy, science fiction, and a deep connection with nature in which trees communicate with each other and humans, and a few humans can mentally connect with animals. Whatever genre this book fits in just settle back and let the author take you into his world.
Dark Straits: Sudden Quiet Book ll by Joshua Veith. Mission Point Press, 2025, 450p., $18.95.
People of the Dune by Jim Olson
This novel impressed me as brilliantly conceived and executed. Simply put it is the story of either the destruction or saving of the fictional Voyager Point Dune that borders Lake Michigan just a few miles south of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The dune is owned by Mython World Mining Corp. who plan to mine the dune's sand which will virtually destroy it. Environmentalists, conservation groups, and various indigenous people try to halt the mining by protesting and camping on the dune claiming it is "historically and culturally unique." A hearing is held and Judge Odom Holmes rules in favor of Mython and allows mining to begin in three days. Then in the true heart of the book Judge Holmes questions his ruling.
The above brief outline unfortunately fails to capture how all-consuming this book becomes within just a few pages. The novel opens with a history of the area handed down orally by the First Americans. There's a rhythm and cadence to their story with the words literally dancing off the paper. The following chapters contain minutes of a corporate board's meetings, the protesting groups notes on plans to counter mining, and the record of a well-argued court hearing and in which Judge Holmes' initial decision is to allow mining on the dune in three days. All of it makes for great reading and invariably raises serious questions in the reader's mind as well as more than a few grins sparked by the wry comments strewn throughout the pages.
And then Judge Holmes awakens the night before mining is to begin haunted by whether or not his decision was legally sound and fair. The reader is party to the judge's anguished self-doubt as he goes over every aspect of his decision. I suspect readers will be drawn to read and reread this section of the book because of the shrewd and thoughtful questions raised about society and the quandaries inherent in laws and their effect on society. Prominent among the questions the judge wrestles with is whether nature is no longer nature but an economic resource with a price on it, and not only what is fair but has the word been redefined? The book is fun to read, strikingly original, drills deep into an important and timely issue, and it makes you think. What more could you ask of a book?
People of the Dune by Jim Olson. Mission Point Press, 2024, 184p., $14.95.
Rescuing Crash: The Good Dog by Sue Harrison
Eleven-year-old Britta is burdened by a back breaking load of sadness. Her mother, with no reason given, has simply walked away from her husband and daughter in Sault Ste Marie and headed for Detroit. Everyone in Britta's school knows it adding to her embarrassment and emotional distress. Her dad loves her but he's a bit of an absent-minded father who leaves most of the housework to his fifth-grade daughter and doesn't seem to be totally aware of Britta's shredded emotions. And he has forgotten Britta's birthday. When he becomes painfully aware of his mistake, he suggests Britta should get a dog for her birthday. Something she's always wanted.
They visit the county dog shelter where Britta picks out a puppy but then an Australian Shepherd catches her eye. The dog looks terribly sad. She's told the breed is extraordinarily loyal and his family had to give him up. Britta immediately feels a bond with this beautiful blue-eyed dog who was also abandoned and takes her home. Her name is Crash and it is appropriate. Crash and Britta slowly bond but the dog is always in trouble, upsetting neighbors, and likes to wander. Dad begins to consider returning Crash to the shelter.
Britta is a very likeable well-drawn character. The author does a fine job of capturing the ambience of the fifth-grade classroom and the word of kids on the brink of teendom. The novel is also very good at creating a believable feel of a father and daughter relationship finding its way through a stressful experience. The narrative is effortlessly readable and when Crash becomes seriously injured the pages fly by. The novel is meant for Middle School Grade readers, but anyone will be touched by the author's depiction of the power of a dog to bring people together, heal broken hearts, and the importance of unquestioning companionship.
Rescuing Crash: The Good Dog by Sue Harrison. Modern History Press, 2025, 146p., $18.95.