Whoever you are, thank you for visiting my novella's Facebook page and keeping it alive. Your interest has led me to return to it and to express some of my thoughts and feelings. It's been awhile since I've posted anything here. Sometime ago I contacted artist and photographer and blogger of magical worlds Rima Staines, seeking her permission to use a photograph of hers for the cover of the short novella I am writing. When I didn't hear from her, I offered to purchase the photograph. She declined but expressed her appreciation that I admired her work. I immediately wrote back, saying I respected her decision but again asked if I could I use her photograph for my book cover. I never heard from her and frankly did not expect to. And while I do respect her decision, I can't help
feeling disappointed. I have done, by my count, nineteen revisions of "A Solitary Landscape." Hard to believe. And I know I'm not done. I need to spend more time at the desk but stuff gets in the way. And so do I. Recently I was in the Village and purposely went over to Idlewild Books on Seventh Ave. South & Perry Street. A really nice store with many travel books as well as literature by authors from all over the world. They were kind enough to put my book, "European Son: a novella," on their shelves. And I, in turn, bought a book of poetry by Pasolini, "A Moveable Feast" by Hemingway and Umberto Saba's coming of age novel, "Ernesto." When I looked through the window that day in the Village, my heart sank. All the shelves were empty of books. In the back were the classrooms where French, Italian and German had been taught. Now those classes were available only online. As for the hundreds of books, I have no idea of their fate. About a year ago a second Shakespeare & Co. opened on the Upper West Side. That store and its sister store near Hunter College have been kind enough to stock my "European Son." And for that I am grateful. Life goes on.