A Housefly in Autumn

by Scott Nagele

When he was 17, Anders nearly died saving the life of a child. That single act of heroism cost him all his hopes and dreams. Now he must decide how to face his altered future. Should he chase the fleeting whisps of what should have been or make the most of the diminished prospects fate has dealt him? Though it is difficult to let go of the rewards life once promised, sometimes the greatest gifts are those earned by building new hope from the bits and pieces of wrecked dreams.A Housefly in Autumn is a novel of hope for readers of all ages, whatever the size of their dreams.

198 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 14, 2015

About the author

Scott Nagele grew up in the Mohawk Valley of New York State. He now lives in Michigan with his wife and three sons. Scott’s writing has been published in Berkeley Fiction Review and other literary journals. His novels are: The Other Place, Temp: Life in the Stagnant Lane, A Housefly in Autumn, and Wasted Moons. He is also author of the short story collection, A Smile Through a Tear. Scott also blogs about his experiences as a writer and a father.

Reviews

[Yare Espinoza · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would give this book three and half stars if it was possible. I enjoyed the story, but it was not the kind of book that I usually read on my own.

The book follows the life of a young man named Anders in the 1800’s and the different obstacles that he has to face throughout his life. When he was young he dreamt of becoming a writer so he can share his stories with the world. One day while he was attending university, he rescued a little girl that was drowning, but in the process almost drowned himself.

The accident left him with some problems connecting his brain to his speech. It is theorized that the lack of oxygen to his brain during the accident damaged the way his brain works. The story is about Anders overcoming the different hurdles presented to him and making a different path in life than what he originally planned.

I would recommend this book to anyone that likes to read stories about overcoming life obstacles. I actually recommended this book to my teenage cousin who connected better to the story than I did, since she is gearing up to apply to college and thinking about what she wants to do with her life.

This book was given to me as a free copy to read and review from a Goodreads Book Club. My review is my honest opinion about the book.

[Sandy Wolters · Rating 5 out of 5]

5*****Stars

Book: A Housefly in Autumn
Author: Scott Nagele
Genre: YA/Historical Fiction
Length: Approximately 198 Pages

A HOUSEFLY IN AUTUMN by SCOTT NAGELE is listed as a YA, but this book is for the young, the old and everyone in between. The setting is 19th century Europe and starts out with a gifted young writer with endless possibilities for the future. In one brief heroic moment, his dreams are shattered and the future no longer holds the endless possibilities he was once afforded. The message in this book is so important, everyone should be able to relate to it.

I must admit that I read a lot of books. I enjoy many different genres, styles of writing and author’s imaginations. I’m lucky because when I read a book, no matter when or where it takes place, the author’s words transport me into their world. Sometimes this is a good thing. Sometimes it’s not so good. In A HOUSEFLY IN AUTUMN, the character of Anders Christiansen reached out of the pages, grabbed me by the throat and made me fall in love with him, care about him and feel his humble pain.

When I first picked this book up, I didn’t stop reading until I was 22% into the book. I only stopped there, because my vision is bad and my eyes couldn’t see the words on the page any longer. My first update on Goodreads was, “What a beautifully sad start.” Mr. Nagele made me feel the glory in achievement, as well as the pain and grief of losing something so very important to the main character, Anders. Mr. Nagele’s writing throughout the book was flawless and took me back to that simpler time in history and helped me become a part of the time and life of the main character.

You’re going to need two things readily available when you get to the end of this book; a box of tissues and a quiet place to read where people won’t look at you weird because you are crying so hard and making faces trying to keep your eyes clear enough to read. When you get to that point in the book, it will not cross your mind to put the book down long enough to wipe your face, blow your nose and dry your tears. You just won’t want to take the time away from the book to do any of that.

A HOUSEFLY IN AUTUMN by SCOTT NAGELE made it deep into the selection process of the 2012 ABNA (Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award) process and rightly so. This book is an amazing read.

Like most readers, I have my favorites in genres, those books that are my go-to books that I read and re-read many times. I also gift those books to friends and family members. In that vein, I’d like to say that A HOUSEFLY IN AUTUMN is a book that everyone would enjoy. To go farther, I think that if you only purchased one book this year, this should be the one.

A HOUSEFLY IN AUTUMN by SCOTT NAGELE is a book I won’t soon forget and one that I can promise you, I will be reading again. This book surpassed any expectations I had when I opened the first page and quickly soared to my favorite Historical Fiction novel I’ve ever read. The writing was impeccable and I fell head over heels in love with the characters. As a reader, I’m thrilled this gem of a book crossed my Kindle.

This book reached out and touched my heart and more importantly, made me feel.

[Pat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three and a half stars. A charming book that is about a young man named Anders Christiansen, who lives in Northern Europe in the early part of the 1800's. He is a young man who it appears is destined to become famous for his writing and genius. He has a loving father and mother, his father tells him wonderful stories when he returns from his adventures as a seaman. This instills a love of stories for young Anders. Anders goes to University, and while there has a tragic accident, that leaves him unable to be the brilliant, aspiring writer. He is taken in by the family of the young girl whose life he saves, Suzette. Anders brain was without oxygen for too long. He is slow with words and cannot bring back the genius he was. But he can still tell stories and stories he tells to the children and to Suzette.

A story of dreams and dreams that have to be remade. A story of love and loss and of tremendous courage and loyalty. The book is about fairy tales and there are some sweet fairy tales in this book, that Anders creates.

This was a book I won in a Goodreads Giveaway. Thank you Scott Nagele. This review is my honest review. I was smiling at the end, and felt this book was a good morality tale. I would also have loved this book to come with some simple illustrations, and been shorter in length.

[Eva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this book felt so long. Want to know why? Because you follow the MC from he was little to the moment he die.(to be exact even after he died)
I didn't mean it was long in an agonizing or painful way, it's merely because of the time frame set in this book that make me feel I've live through that lifetime and upon finishing the book I feel so old and that is when you know the world that the book create is more real than the reality. Gosh, why am I experiencing thissssss.

"For the moment, his burning lungs were rewarded with a sweet draught of fresh air."

Ok, to be honest it was hard to get into at first because I'm so not used to the writing style and sometimes I just question the rational behind some dialogue or scene but every time I say "Why? Why?", I always find the answer in the next pages. I admit it was slow at first but eventually you'll come to a point where you'll just flip through pages.

"Live your life; don’t waste it in self-pity. Fulfill that reason.”

This is one of the book that will hit you hard in a good way. I don't know where it will hit you but for me it could be my soul or maybe my heart or maybe even my tear gland cause for sure my tears dropped. So, along this story I really get attached to the MC and I found myself rooting for him the entire time.

[nightlyreadingheather · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although I would not classify this book as strictly YA, I did enjoy it. It is not something that I would normally read and really had to concentrate on the story line hence the three stars. Those were given on my personal opinion of how much I enjoyed the story and not how it was written or any flaw from the writer himself.

This book is a life story telling about a young man named Ander. Ander became fascinated with story telling as a small child when his father would tell him stories of his adventures as a seaman. He had a very bright future until a tragic accident while he is attending university which leaves his brain a bit muddled. He must then re-work his outlook on what is left of his life and how he is going to live it.

The story literally starts when Ander is a small boy living with his parents until he takes his last breath. We get to see his life all the way through along with all the ups and downs that he had struggles with. Ander is a really good man and he definitely left his mark on the world for other's to mimic.

This is a story about inspiration, loss and keeping your head up when life wants to pull you down. Perfect for anyone whom enjoys real life stories and is looking for some much needed inspiration.

Thank you to the author for the review copy for this review.

[Carol Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful story about a great story teller.

This was a completely lovely story which touched my heart ❤️. A very intelligent young boy/man and this brave and humble hero, even after giving all he could give still was extremely humble and feeling like he did not do all he could have done. This story actually affected my dreams with how he strived to help, I felt out of breath with him in his struggle to bring his friend back home to get him to a doctor. This is a wonderful story for anyone to read. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 Five shining stars!

[Fred · Rating 5 out of 5]

So touching. Excellent writing! Thanks for a great book!

[Wendy Lowdermilk Larvick · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fairy tale about the power of storytelling and how it shapes and provides meaning to our lives. Beautifully written with humor and grace - I thoroughly enjoyed this book!

[Nancy Silk · Rating 5 out of 5]

"A Remarkable Tale of Survival, Compassion, and Struggles"

This is a story suitable for young adults, one which all should read, as well as adults. It is set in 19th Century Europe and the author's writing is styled to that time frame. Anders Christiansen is four years old when his father, a fisherman, returns from the sea on a day in 1816. He loves his father who thrills him with stories which he loves to hear. He soon begins sharing his own tales delighting other classmates and teachers as he grows older. When he is 14 years old, his creative stories become more about people rather than animals and objects. He starts to observe more people and listening to them as they gather in markets and business places. Soon he is chosen to attend a university away from home. The professors at the university recognize his valued gift as high quality and seek to promote and guide him to be very successful. After a year at school, a message is hand-delivered to him which states his father has been lost at sea and his mother is gravely ill. He's to return home immediately. Soon his mother dies, and as he returns to college, it's difficult for him to find a rooming house. Very soon, his life changes dramatically, but he has one faithful friend who wishes to help him: a large white dog. This is a remarkable tale of survival, compassion, and the struggles in making the most of one's life. This story is written mostly as from a story teller, with little dialog, but it's a remarkable tale for young readers if they are encouraged to take the time to engulf themselves into this meaningful story. Highly recommend.

[Stacy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't really think this was going to be my cup of tea from the description, but I loved everything about this one. I may have even shed a tear or two. I'll write more later but just logging it :)