Third Peak at A HOOK IN THE SKY

Angered by his wife
Robert damages his work
This is the third Friday you get a peak at A HOOK IN THE SKY. There will be another chance next week, then I shall stop this particular music and start with another! Once you're finished here, I urge you to take a look at the snippets posted by other Boomer Lit authors on their blogs: you'll find the links listed on the Boomer Lit Friday website. And you'll discover what are enduring features of Boomer lit: a broad range of sub-genres and high quality writing. Don't be surprised, it is a genre that attracts experienced and professional writers...

A HOOK IN THE SKY is a "slice-of-life" novel, the story of a retiree-turned-artist to the dismay of his much younger wife and they fight over art. Robert's tastes run to the academic, Kay is cool and loves contemporary art. What is really at stake is their marriage. When his old mother, a painter of the 1930s School of Paris, comes over to New York to stay with the couple, she has her own say in the matter.

Here's today's excerpt, a dialogue between Robert and his mother just as Robert feels caught between the two women



"...This is very serious, Robert. I’m your mother, remember? I can see what’s happening to your marriage. You’re allowing your wife to convince you that what you do is worthless.”

“Nonsense. Kay’s tastes are different from yours and mine. That’s all.”

“Oh, but it’s not just a matter of taste! The problems between you run much deeper than that! I’m an old woman, I have experience. I see what I see…”

“In that case, just keep your eyes shut, will you?”

Her eyes widened as if she wanted to convey something important and didn’t know how. Then she did something very theatrical. She plunged to the floor, taking hold of his ankle. Crouching at his feet, she held his leg in both hands. “Now, try walking!” She said.

“What do you mean?”

“Try walking, I tell you! Come on, push that leg forward!”
He didn’t try hard, not wanting to hurt her, but he felt his leg straining against her hands.
“See? You’re slowed down! You can’t walk. That’s what Kay does to you!”
The next day she flew back to Paris.
It was a relief to see her go.

A Hook in the Sky available on Amazon, click here for more details.

Want to see the new book trailer? It's updated with the new book cover (based on my own artwork): 


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Comments

Unknown said…
That's some tough mama!!!
Beth Carpenter said…
I have mixed feelings about Robert's mother. On one hand, she's overstepping boundaries in his marriage, possibly making things worse. On the other hand, she's right.
Laurie Boris said…
Wow. She and Estelle could go at it. Fabulous excerpt!
Anonymous said…
Sometimes, Mother knows best.
Thanks for the comments, dear friends! Yes, Mother knows best and yes, she's certainly making things worse. I wanted to catch that ambiguity in a mother's role, I'm so glad you saw it! In my view, things are never black and/or white, but all shades of...grey, LOL!
Unknown said…
Great reading Claude lots of suspense and descriptive examples of emotional thought, I like the music for the video good choice of jingles, well done. Have a great weekend and please keep me posted about the book.
Shelley Lieber said…
Very nicely done. Once again, very visual...I "see" the action taking place. (I bet it was a relief to see her go!)
Happy to, Jim, and thanks for the comment...I hope you eventually find you want to read it! There will be another peak next week then I'll move on to my new upcoming book...
Thanks, Shelley, yes, that's the implication...Mothers can be meddling even if they mean well!
Yes, Richard, I am I suppose! Although I'm not so sure it's "good" for me. It's been very hard in many ways and much of that experience has resurfaced of course in A Hook in the Sky. Indeed, I'm convinced one can write well only about what one knows intimately...
Anonymous said…
Claude, that scene you chose was one of my favorites when I read your book. The complexities of KNOWING something about your adult children and wanting so much to help them... But, I vote on the side of: mom went too far. I was as relieved to see her go as he was! Terrific writing, as usual and good job of choosing an intriguing excerpt!
Thanks, and your comment is...typically mutinous boomer-like! Yes, you're right, the mother did go too far, I felt that too, but I just SAW her do it, so I had to write it down! I'm happy to get your feedback about this specific scene, nice to know that one has managed to get the whole complexity/ambiguity of the scene across!