_w960_h960/Build Me a Tower (Small)_12130230.jpg "Build Me a Tower")
Build Me a Tower
Published by Secant Publishing, LLC
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“Lyrical scenes depict the art and effort of building with stone, as well as community celebrations such as barn-raising. At the center of this beautifully-written novel is a passionate, unstable relationship between two complex people who know how to create, and how to destroy.”
- Cary Holladay, author of HORSE PEOPLE: STORIES
"The novel is a true character study. McRaven (The Classic Hewn-Log House, 2014, etc.) builds a compelling narrative around an unlikely hero; an aging, reticent stonemason whose rough exterior hides a sharp intellect and reflective nature. Theo and Hannie’s relationship is satisfyingly nuanced, as the author probes the issues that hide beneath the surface tensions created by long days at work or jealousy. Theo’s steady friendship with Beth, which reappears throughout the tale, effectively counterbalances an otherwise complex love life. The evocative descriptions of days spent outdoors under wide-open Western skies, fly-fishing, or riding horses, are reminiscent of the work of Norman Maclean or Jim Harrison."
- Kirkus Reviews
Theo MacBain is known from coast to coast as a stonemason's mason, master of the art of finding just the right rock at the right time. Word of mouth alone guarantees him all the high-end stonework he can handle. His face is weathered, his craftsman's arms sinewed.
Stones are easy, but people are hard. His ex-wife is estranged. His two grown children rarely call. When Hanson Blair, a troubled young woman with a sketchy past, apprentices herself to Theo, his solitude begins to show cracks. Theo and Hannie work hard at respecting the bounds of their friendship, while he steps out on thin ice with more age-appropriate prospects: a schoolteacher with bottled-up yearnings; a lawyer who reserves her ferocious passion for prosecuting domestic abusers.
What is the right answer? In the end, after a lifetime of disappointment and sorrow, the master stonemason with the craggy exterior may be left with one saving grace: his foolish willingness to put it all on the line, expose his heart, and risk making one last mistake.
- Cary Holladay, author of HORSE PEOPLE: STORIES
"The novel is a true character study. McRaven (The Classic Hewn-Log House, 2014, etc.) builds a compelling narrative around an unlikely hero; an aging, reticent stonemason whose rough exterior hides a sharp intellect and reflective nature. Theo and Hannie’s relationship is satisfyingly nuanced, as the author probes the issues that hide beneath the surface tensions created by long days at work or jealousy. Theo’s steady friendship with Beth, which reappears throughout the tale, effectively counterbalances an otherwise complex love life. The evocative descriptions of days spent outdoors under wide-open Western skies, fly-fishing, or riding horses, are reminiscent of the work of Norman Maclean or Jim Harrison."
- Kirkus Reviews
Theo MacBain is known from coast to coast as a stonemason's mason, master of the art of finding just the right rock at the right time. Word of mouth alone guarantees him all the high-end stonework he can handle. His face is weathered, his craftsman's arms sinewed.
Stones are easy, but people are hard. His ex-wife is estranged. His two grown children rarely call. When Hanson Blair, a troubled young woman with a sketchy past, apprentices herself to Theo, his solitude begins to show cracks. Theo and Hannie work hard at respecting the bounds of their friendship, while he steps out on thin ice with more age-appropriate prospects: a schoolteacher with bottled-up yearnings; a lawyer who reserves her ferocious passion for prosecuting domestic abusers.
What is the right answer? In the end, after a lifetime of disappointment and sorrow, the master stonemason with the craggy exterior may be left with one saving grace: his foolish willingness to put it all on the line, expose his heart, and risk making one last mistake.
Paperback and Hardcover | 256 pages
| $16.95 USD
| 6 x 9
| 978-1-944962-11-1
| June 15, 2016