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Barge Pilot
Barge Pilot was a Finalist in the First Novel (under 80,000 words category) of the 2013 Next Generation Indie Book Awards, and represents an honest, often brutal view of modern manhood.
Jack Webber woke up yesterday to discover he was blind in one eye. This morning, Jack learned that one of his few remaining friends, a man feared and reviled as the town drunk, has been found dead from an apparent alcohol-fueled suicide. Possessed by his desire to understand the violent death of this damaged man, and suffering from a debilitating disease, Jack lurches headlong into a maze of loss, deception and heartache. While grappling with the revelations of his friend's shadowy, secretive life Jack is confronted with the guilt that fills the gulf between himself and his estranged sons. In the space of a single day, Jack's reclusive life in the Ozarks is torn apart, leaving none of those closest to him unscathed. A second round contender in the 2012 Amazon Breakthrough Novel contest, Barge Pilot is a bold, panoramic view of the beauty and the suffering of fatherhood. Driven by the rich traditions of Southern literature, Barge Pilot cuts across social and economic classes to examine modern fatherhood as seen through the eyes of the privileged as well as the powerless.
Jack Webber woke up yesterday to discover he was blind in one eye. This morning, Jack learned that one of his few remaining friends, a man feared and reviled as the town drunk, has been found dead from an apparent alcohol-fueled suicide. Possessed by his desire to understand the violent death of this damaged man, and suffering from a debilitating disease, Jack lurches headlong into a maze of loss, deception and heartache. While grappling with the revelations of his friend's shadowy, secretive life Jack is confronted with the guilt that fills the gulf between himself and his estranged sons. In the space of a single day, Jack's reclusive life in the Ozarks is torn apart, leaving none of those closest to him unscathed. A second round contender in the 2012 Amazon Breakthrough Novel contest, Barge Pilot is a bold, panoramic view of the beauty and the suffering of fatherhood. Driven by the rich traditions of Southern literature, Barge Pilot cuts across social and economic classes to examine modern fatherhood as seen through the eyes of the privileged as well as the powerless.
217 pages, Paperback
First published June 7, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
May 26, 2013
Jack Weber, an ex-lawyer with multiple sclerosis, is estranged from his two sons and living a reclusive life next to Beaver Lake in the Ozarks. His three closest friends, Sheriff Warren, Oscar the caretaker, and Sid the town drunk, have a lot of history and cannot get along without each other. Author R. Lee Barrett explores how the complicated relationships between these four men developed. When Sid found dead, Jack drags his remaining friends into the horror as he figures out whether it is murder or suicide. The aftermath leaves no one untouched and exposes the depths of human debauchery.
Well written, good pacing, and interesting characters.
Well written, good pacing, and interesting characters.
September 19, 2014
Barge Pilot isn't for the fan of quick easy reading. It's a well thought out book with amazing description that places you exactly where the author wants you but at times it can be a little much when you are looking to get to the story.
If you aren't up on your metaphors, you might find some of the sentences hard to read but his characters are vivid and real and extremely easy to become emotionally attached to. He's made them easy to identify with them.
Barge Pilot isn't your genre fast paced, action packed book. This is a character story that has you turning the page to learn more about each person involved in the story.
While it's not an easy read, it's worthwhile read.
If you aren't up on your metaphors, you might find some of the sentences hard to read but his characters are vivid and real and extremely easy to become emotionally attached to. He's made them easy to identify with them.
Barge Pilot isn't your genre fast paced, action packed book. This is a character story that has you turning the page to learn more about each person involved in the story.
While it's not an easy read, it's worthwhile read.
August 1, 2012
I loved this story. The various significant characters are well developed so you find yourself being able to identify/empathize with many of them and invest in them. The descriptions of settings are thorough and vivid and help the story come alive. There is quite a bit of humor mixed in with a serious story. The conversations/descriptions of the struggles and misunderstandings between the main character and his sons are really well done and thought-provoking. Where is book #2, Mr. Barrett?
July 16, 2012
While I liked the likable characters well enough, overall, I didn't care much for the book. There was a lot of extraneous stuff that didn't lend anything but words to the story. I didn't care for the writing style. It had me going back and rereading parts to try to understand what was being said.
October 7, 2012
This book is very graphic. The author is a great writer and can completely put you in whatever setting he chooses. I would just rather not be in most of the settings he describes. Very different from my normal choices, but I appreciated his style and deep and detailed story line. This book requires thinking - it's not just spoon fed.
July 20, 2012
The prologue was disturbingly intriguing, but the rest of the book was awful. It read as if the author just discovered a thesaurus. The characters were never really developed, and the plot went nowhere.
Want to Read
July 13, 2012$0.0
December 23, 2013
Not an easy read. You needed to think and some parts were difficult to read.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews