More with Cal and Uncle Bill
W. Jack Savage
Xlibris Corporation
ISBN: Softcover: 978-1-4535-2770-2 E-book: 978-1-4535-2771-9
174 pages
In reading More with Cal and Uncle Bill by
W. Jack Savage, with its curves and twists, I was reminded of my
childhood and the road my family traveled when we went to visit my
grandmother. I sat on the edge of my seat, holding my breath as we
mastered the hilly zigzags of the road and reached our destination. This
novel affected me in much the same way; it was an exciting journey in
which I learned to expect the unexpected right up to its very powerful
and climatic ending.
Mr. Savage is a natural and entertaining
storyteller, using the character of Cal to spin a tale in his unassuming
manner about his life with his Uncle Bill. Though Cal is the main
character, he is so ordinary—as described by himself—that I was shocked
to learn that he had been in prison for murder. Readers find out more
details about his imprisonment later on as the story progresses. Savage
is a master at using flashbacks so that readers don’t experience the
interruptions; rather they sense that the pieces of this story-puzzle
are slowly fitting into the larger picture, answering pertinent
questions for readers. Although I consider this an excellent narrative,
there is an abundance of dialog that breathes life into the characters,
giving them each unique characteristics of realism.
It is interesting to see the character of Cal
evolve from the ex-convict who moved into his Uncle Bill’s basement
apartment in Temple City, California, to a man who had one harrowing
experience after another. It seemed he was often in the wrong place at
the wrong time or in the wrong place at the right time. To some he was
a hero; to others, a man to be used and manipulated for their own
purposes. Readers will have difficulty in determining the good guys and
gals from the bad ones. That makes for good suspense. For a time Cal
worked the graveyard shift at Klein’s Grocery, stocking shelves, but as
the story progresses, readers will applaud as he goes back to school,
gets a Bachelor’s Degree and finds unique employment opportunities that
often lead to more than he bargains for. He has several close calls with
death as unbelievable situations occur that could never have been
foretold. Soon he shows off his writing skills, sharing the truth of
these situations with Arnie Rosen and the readers of the L. A. Times.
Much of the information was taken from an up-to-date journal he had been
keeping for years. Ultimately, he becomes very well known as readers
look forward to reading about this unassuming, rather ordinary man who
has extraordinary things happen to him.
I enjoyed the character of Uncle Bill who had
retired from the LAPD and was obviously a man who cared about Cal.
Actually, Bill was Cal’s uncle via marriage to the sister of Cal’s
mother, but their relationship reminded me of one between a father and
son. Bill always supported his nephew, offering advice, but never trying
to reign in his free will.
Although Cal realized that women didn’t find him
particularly attractive, he wasn’t concerned. He had married and
divorced early in life—the result of the relationship was an intense
dislike of redheads and a prison sentence. But more about that when you
read the book! There was one girl named Clare that he had met over a
beer one morning after working the graveyard shift at the grocery
store. He took her home and when Uncle Bill didn’t seem to object, she
stayed with them for a time. If only both of them had known where this
would lead, they certainly would have booted her out immediately. As it
turned out, they carried away her body, wrapped in a rug.
There are some very emotional scenes in this novel,
such as when Cal meets his grandson for the first time. Later on he
gets acquainted with his son from that early marriage. I found myself
pleased at these events, knowing that Cal was really a “good guy,”
regardless of the strange happenings that occurred in his life. And,
yes, he does eventually fall in love with a beautiful woman, and it
didn’t seem to matter if she was a redhead or a brunette.
This is an exciting, fast-paced book which I highly
recommend. Watch out for the author; he is going places.
Bettie Corbin Tucker
For independent Professional Book Reviewers
www.bookreviewers.org
August 14, 2010
