RICHARD PEAKE

www.richardhpeakebooks.com RARE BIRD ALERT

EARTH AND STARS

LOVE AND DEATH ON SAFARI BIRDS AND OTHER BEASTS JAKYLL’S JOUST

BEAUTY’S NO BISCUIT MOON’S BLACK GOLD

A PUBLICATION BY LETTRA PRESS

RICHARD PEAKE

RICHARD PEAKE BOOKS

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R I C H A RD P E A K E , Author | DIGITAL EDITION

RICHARD PEAKE BOOKS

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R I C H A RD P E A K E , Author | DIGITAL EDITION

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RICHARD PEAKE

R I C H A RD P E A K E , Author | DIGITAL EDITION

RARE BIRD ALERT On a flight to a birding tour in Australia, Margaret Smith develops a friendship with Hammond (“Porky”) Frank. On the first part of the tour, they become close friends, although Margaret (“Maggie”) becomes suspicious of Porky. On the northern part of the trip, they are joined by a new assistant leader, Jameson Kanger, who begins a scheme with Porky.

Left to herself, Maggie spends time with other tour members, especially Patricia Shaper, a young Olympic Women’s Trap Skeet champion. Kanger drugs Shaper and rapes her. Patsy confides in Maggie and they avoid Kanger and Porky the rest of the tour, although Porky renews his relationship with Maggie when she returns to Galveston, Texas. She arranges a meeting for him with Mackensie Craft, a wealthy birder willing to pay to see a rare and supposedly extinct Eskimo curlew. The proposed sighting goes awry as Shaper intrudes and, in the confusion, Craft kills Hammond and Kanger. Two local policemen try to solve the murders. They eventually do even though they are also working on a case involving a serial rapist, but Craft disappears. So, the murder mystery becomes a manhunt during which the policemen are married by women who help them apprehend the serial rapist.

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RICHARD PEAKE

R I C H A RD P E A K E , Author | DIGITAL EDITION

MOON’S BLACK GOLD Everett “Moon” Lunamin returns from battles in Vietnam determined to gain wealth and social status mining coal during the coal boom of the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Moon struggles with his cousin George Landsetter, a reclamation officer, and surface mining competitors whose greed exceeds their ethics. He succeeds and marries his high school sweetheart, whose family accepts him because he is now wealthy. Moon becomes unhappy that his wife Susan enjoys his money but is unhappy with his efforts to obtain it. They both neglect their son and seek companionship outside their marriage, but Susan refuses divorce to keep her lifestyle. Moon returns from a trip to Africa with his lover and finds Susan murdered with his shotgun. Beset by the IRS, an ambitious prosecutor, and several jealous cousins, Moon struggles to save his business and his life.

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RICHARD PEAKE

R I C H A RD P E A K E , Author | DIGITAL EDITION

LOVE AND DEATH ON SAFARI Jimmy Russo is a successful businessman and an obsessive lister of the world’s birds—until his murder while on a safari in Sierra Leone, Africa. Few of his fellow travelers mourn his death, as his constant negativity, foul mouth, and abuse of his wife, Jane, have long since alienated them.

One of them, Jackson Burnbridge, has known the couple since meeting them on a birding tour in Argentina while recovering from a rough divorce after twenty years of marriage. What’s more, he and Jane Russo have a past— an affair in Argentina that Jane wants to renew in Africa, despite his resistance. Jack is well aware that this, along with Jimmy’s jealousy of him, makes him a prime suspect, and so he carefully reviews the trip, hoping to suss out the identity of the killer. Meanwhile, he finds himself drawn to another member of the group, Iris Fogelman, and wonders if they can find happiness together, in spite of Jane’s continued pursuit of him.

In this novel, when an obnoxious traveler is killed while on safari, a man who had an affair with the victim’s wife deals with the aftermath of the murder and searches for a love of his own.

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RICHARD PEAKE

R I C H A R D P E A K E , Author | DIGITAL EDITION

JAKYLL’S JOUST John Jaykyll, professor at a small college in southern Appalachia, is having a mid-life crisis resulting from his conflict with the new college president, who hates his mountain origins, and dislikes Jaykyll because he is defending mountain literature and culture and the young professor in charge of this program who is accused by a crazy French professor of having an affair with his wife. His jealousy leads his to seek the murder of his neighbor, the young English professor.

The French professor supports the malicious and crooked president of the college. Jaykyll undergoes treatment by a psychologist, who uncovers the source of the professor’s problem in his fear of a loss of love from conflict with his lovers. Jaykyll enlists many supporters, uncovers the illegal dealings of President Malmuth, and defeat his enemy.

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RICHARD PEAKE

R I C H A R D P E A K E , Author | DIGITAL EDITION

BEAUTY’S NO BISCUIT A sequel to Moons Black Gold, this novel deals with the struggle of George Landsetter to keep his five hundred acres of woodland from Dave Blackmun, a lawless miner and criminal kingpin.

Helped by Mike Barton and the FBI, George brings down Blackmun while trying to court Heidi Leaves, head of a nonprofit promoting better mining laws.

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RICHARD PEAKE

R I C H A R D P E A K E , Author | DIGITAL EDITION

EARTH AND STARS There is tremendous variety in form, theme, and tone in the poems in this volume. Many of the poems may strike the reader as corroboration of Thoreau’s view of wildness and wilderness because Peake’s love of wild things forms his poetic center, but this book also includes intense love poems as well as celebrations of birds and trees and lightning bugs.

Though Peake celebrates nature, he does not view it with sentimentality. He faces without tears a world in which one creature preys upon another for survival, and he looks without fear to the “revelry of the grave” when his form becomes food for worms and feeds the laurel bushes growing over him.

According to critic John Lang, Peake’s poems reveal “a poet whose ear is attuned to the music of words” His poems abound “in beautiful lines and images: ‘The black-necked waders cry in their wet fields, ‘ for example, and ‘skies the white-faced ibis soars.’ Such lines embody in Fred Chappell’s phrase, ‘the eye’s joy.’” Like Peake’s descriptions of finding a rare green kingfisher, for readers of his poems, “Delight follows discovery.”

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RICHARD PEAKE

R I C H A R D P E A K E , Author | DIGITAL EDITION

BIRDS AND OTHER BEASTS There is tremendous variety in form, theme, and tone in the poems in this volume. Many of the poems may strike the reader as corroboration of Thoreau’s view of wildness and wilderness because Peake’s love of wild things forms his poetic center, but this book also includes intense love poems as well as celebrations of birds and trees and lightning bugs.

Though Peake celebrates nature, he does not view it with sentimentality. He faces without tears a world in which one creature preys upon another for survival, and he looks without fear to the “revelry of the grave” when his form becomes food for worms and feeds the laurel bushes growing over him.

According to critic John Lang, Peake’s poems reveal “a poet whose ear is attuned to the music of words” His poems abound “in beautiful lines and images: ‘The black-necked waders cry in their wet fields, ‘ for example, and ‘skies the white-faced ibis soars.’ Such lines embody in Fred Chappell’s phrase, ‘the eye’s joy.’” Like Peake’s descriptions of finding a rare green kingfisher, for readers of his poems, “Delight follows discovery.”

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R I C H A R D P E A K E , Author | DIGITAL EDITION

RICHARD PEAKE

US REVIEW OF BOOKS Love and Death on Safari

by Richard H. Peake book review by Jonah Meyer “Like Wordsworth, I feel my heart leaping up when I encounter the beauty of a cloud, a forest, or a new bird.”

Since divorcing his wife, Jack has found comfort and purpose in the world of serious birdwatching. On a birding tour during an African safari, this novel brings together about a half-d ozen characters, all with overthe-top and often conflicting personalities.

They join two highly experienced bird-tour guides as they explore the African continent in an amazing opportunity to learn about the abundance of avian life, including many rare and endangered species.

There is one tiny problem toward the end of their trip, which puts a slight damper on things. Jimmy Russo, who rubbed just about everybody the wrong way with his rough attitude, crude remarks, and tendency towards fistfights, apparently has fallen off a cliff and is dead. The evidence suggests the probability of murder, not simply an accident. Anyone in the small tour group could be suspect. In addition to the unexpected death, love is born on the

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expedition, as Iris Fogelman and Jack strike up a passionate romance, eventually making plans to marry once back in the States. The only problem is that Jane (Russo’s wife), who Jack had romanced on a previous birding tour in Argentina, is continuously making aggressive advances toward him, despite his resistance and stated interest in Iris.

Peake has written an enjoyable novel that excels at character development in this adventure on the dark continent. To be sure, readers who are into birding (or to a lesser degree, wildlife in general, especially the species-rich variety found throughout Africa) will absolutely enjoy this book. An enormous diversity of birdlife, often painted in exquisite detail, constitutes a large portion of the substance of this tale. The often over-the-top behavior of the humans, both humorous and at times unsettling, is simply icing on the cake.

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US REVIEW OF BOOKS Rare Bird Alert

by Richard H. Peake book review by Joel Samberg “The soft strains of Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto in A Major complemented Georgina’s voice with what Bob thought was a sexy background.”

With a curious cast of characters, a travelogue of colorful locales, and a query into why unusual characters do what they do in picturesque places, this book is about human reactions to various nonhuman and decidedly inhuman things.

The non-human things include birds and natural settings, while the inhuman things includerape and murder. From Australia to Galveston to a South Pacific island, from lonely people to nosy people to bad people, from sparrows to orioles to kookaburras, this book is a unique expedition into birdwatching and crime, told in a literary style that often appears casual, here and there caustic, perhaps even semi-satirical. The result is a twenty-four chapter excursion into fiction that is sometimes too strange to be believed but also too observant not to have some truth behind it.

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While the narrative flow is a bit unusual, the book makes up for it in a tale as unique as they come. The storytelling leaves the impression that this singular effort was written in something akin to a literary monotone. The characters are not exceedingly easy to care about, but the promise is there, beginning with the work’s intriguing title. This puts the reader in a curious mood, making one instantly wonder if this work will duplicate the tone of a whimsical movie like The Big Year, the 2011 film about bird enthusiasts who try to outdo each other, or if it will be closer to Steve Martin’s own Rare Bird Alert, in which the comedian plays the banjo and provides lyrics and music lessons. Peake’s novel is unlike either one. Instead, it is distinctive in its own right, a distinction that comes from its unusual and sprawling storyline.

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RICHARD PEAKE

US REVIEW OF BOOKS Jaykyll’s Joust

by Richard H. Peake book review by Donna Ford “He managed to conceal from everyone who interviewed him that he was a mountain boy who had, in the mountain phraseology, got above his raising.”

This fast-paced novel replete with danger and sex is set on the campus of the fictional Pine Mountain College. One of the smaller universities in Kentucky, PMC has earned a reputation for providing courses in rustic sciences and cultures. The trigger point for the story is about the hiring of a new school president. Jason Malmuth arrives with plans to change the college into his vision of a sophisticated, polished educational establishment.

To accomplish his task, several professors have to go, even if evil ways must be employed. For example, John Jaykyll is highly respected but is suspected of visiting a head doctor about confrontational fears.

Roger Duvant should be the easiest to remove since he is not tenured. And, of course, there are geologist Daniel Crockett and field ecologist Nathaniel Boone who share technical information about the mountains and vicinity Nothing happens

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as planned when the first semester unfolds. Neither mountainside pushes nor faulty brake lines can quite spoil the day.

Even Belle’s bottom is not as dangerous as it seems. Large donations from college supporters arrive in the nick of time. The long-anticipated ending provides both unexpected outcomes and surprising helpers.

Peake has created a strong antagonist with evil cohorts to joust against the likable protagonists. Most of the characters in this book have a real heart and love for their way of life. Will President Malmuth ever learn to appreciate the natural beauty of his campus and community? Can ‘Jack’ Jaykyll gather the courage to slay his giant?

The author’s novel is entertaining while informative regarding the Appalachian culture of mountainous Kentucky. Mystery and danger, along with vivid sexual encounters, quickly attract and hold the reader’s attention. Humor also shows up in the names of characters and places.

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US REVIEW OF BOOKS Moon’s Black Gold

by Richard H. Peake book review by Priscilla Estes “Everett Lunamin had never been one to savor. He had in fact been a gulper of the first rank.”

“Black Gold” is coal, the cash crop of southwestern Virginia, and Moon’s gold comes from the controversial practice of strip mining, where land is razed for the rich vein of ebony beneath the earth’s epidermis. Moon (Everett Adamo Lunamin), fresh from Viet Nam and tired of being “dirt poor,” returns to his corner of Virginia, determined to be a rich man. He quickly grabs a piece of the lucrative coal industry to fund a lifestyle he believes will fulfill him. Money does capture respect, security, and the high-school sweetheart of his dreams. But Moon’s mountain man spirit is tied to nature, the very flora and fauna strip mining displaces. As financial gains (and a woman) free his mind and soul to concentrate on learning, thinking, and self-examination, Moon’s story morphs into an homage to the mountain way of life with all its kith and kin, including Mother Nature raped by strip mining.

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Along the way, union strikes, environmental and political tensions, rivalries for coal and women, and even murder keep the stakes high and the storyline packed to bursting. Detailed physical descriptions, the Appalachian dialect, and immersion in the post Viet Nam period in southwestern Virginia keep the story rolling like the mountains in which it is set. “Tan snakes sinuously arranged from top to bottom” choke the mountain ridges. Mountain men, who say “by gonnies” and “hit” instead of “it,” explain the origin of “Melungeons” and call each other “honey.” Marijuana rivals coal for cash, moonshine is plentiful, and sometimes “legal” is a state of mind. Subtly using the metaphors of mining and nature in an Anthropocene era, Peake uncovers the deep vein of richness within Moon, an Appalachian to his core. The art and culture of strip mining fascinate as much as Moon’s journey to a greater self brings joy.

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