Everyone Dies Famous
Len Joy
File Size: 1016 KB
Print Length: 249 pages
Page Numbers Source ISBN: 1945448725
Publisher: BQB Publishing (July 1, 2020)
Publication Date: July 1, 2020
Sold by: Amazon.com Services LLC
Language: English
ASIN: B07WXM4C9Y
Description
As a tornado threatens their town, a stubborn old man who has lost his son teams up with a troubled young soldier to deliver a jukebox to the wealthy developer having an affair with the soldier's wife.
It's July 2003 and the small town of Maple Springs, Missouri is suffering through a month-long drought. Dancer Stonemason, a long-forgotten hometown hero still grieving over the death of his oldest son, is moving into town to live with his more dependable younger son. He hires Wayne Mesirow, an Iraq war veteran, to help him liquidate his late son's business.
The heatwave breaks and the skies darken. Dancer tries to settle an old score while Wyne discovers the true cost of his wife's indifference and turns his thoughts to revenge. When the tornado hits Maple Springs, only one of the men will make it out alive.
"Everyone Dies Famous" is a story from the heartland about the uncommon lives of everyday people - the choices they make, how they live their lives, and how they die.
My Review
Joy begins this tale, July 18, 2003, with Dancer Stonemason, standing is his dead sons Clayton's driveway, whistling for Clayton's dog, Russell.
Dancer is known for pitching a perfect game. He had two sons Clayton and Jim. Jim is the largest GM dealer in Southern Missouri. Interestingly, Jim's wife Paula once had a close relationship with Clayton.
Ted Landis, a wealthy developer, now owns the home where Dancer had been staying. Dancer is walking downstream to visit two women, Phoebe and Lucy. They live in the ramshackle cottage and are refusing to sell their property to Landis.
At the cottage, Dancer meets Wayne Mesirow who recently returned from a National Guard tour in Iraq. Wayne will help Dancer deliver JukeBoxes to Landis. Oddly enough, we learn Wayne's wife is having an affair with Landis, while Wayne is trying to come to terms with the suicide of his buddy, Sonny.
I was captivated by the eerily quiet prologue. There are many tragic connections in this skillfully written storyline and the observable similarities between Dancer and Wayne evoke multiple senses.
In one day, we learn it is the hottest summer in years. The people in Maple Springs Missouri have secret relationships and are grieving a loss in one way or another.
We see flashbacks and life-changing incidents that afford us the opportunity to recognize we all are created to interact and support one another. And, like an impending tornado, we often leave a cloud of debris behind and are in need of rescue. Yes. Everyone dies famous.
I received a copy of this book through the generosity of Anna Sacca, Senior Publicity Manager with FSB Associates.
About the Author
Len Joy had an idyllic childhood, growing up in the gem of the Finger Lakes, Canandaigua, New York. As a typical small town boy, he had a wide range of interests, most involving sports. He lettered in four sports in high school and went off to the University of Rochester with dreams of becoming a football hero and world famous novelist.
Didn’t happen. He switched his major from English to Finance and quit the football team, but started dating one of the cheerleaders – Suzanne Sawada. Three years later they were married, and four decades later, they still are.
They moved to Chicago where Suzanne became a corporate lawyer and Len, with his MBA and CPA, became the auditing manager for U. S. Gypsum. Despite the thrill of auditing gypsum plants, Len found himself wanting a different challenge.
He bought an engine remanufacturing company in Arizona and for fifteen years commuted to Phoenix. Despite the travel, he managed to stay married and have three kids. While flying, he read hundreds of novels, which renewed his dream of becoming a world famous author.
In 2004 he wound down his engine business and started taking writing courses and participating in triathlons.
While world fame remains elusive, Len has made advances in his writing career.
His first novel, AMERICAN PAST TIME was published in 2014. KIRKUS praised it as a “darkly nostalgic study of an American family through good times and bad, engagingly set against major events from the ‘50s to the ‘70s as issues of race simmer in the background…expertly written and well-crafted.”
His second novel, BETTER DAYS (2018) was described by FOREWORD Reviews as “a bighearted, wry, and tender novel that focuses on love and loyalty.” KIRKUS called it “a character-rich skillfully plotted Midwestern drama.”
AMERICAN PAST TIME and BETTER DAYS were awarded the Gold and Silver Medals respectively in the 2019 Readers' Favorite Award Contest.
Today, Len is a nationally ranked triathlete and competes internationally representing the United States as part of TEAM USA.
His three kids (a son and two daughters) have grown up and moved away, although the daughters return frequently to Evanston to do their laundry and get legal advice from their mother.