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Incident At Rancho Alvarado
Socorro Alvarado doesn’t know it yet, but an unscrupulous county official has designs on her hundred-year-old house and the sacred Apache spring she has guarded all her life. Enter Kenny Lynch, a wounded Vietnam vet and his merry band of porch partiers. In the spirit of Edward Abbey’s Monkey Wrench Gang, the ragtag irregulars of 5th Street launch what is arguably the most original and unconventional fight against evil ever imagined.
Set in a western town eighty years after the last gunfight, this tale examines the invisible ties that bind us, the families that we create through shared experiences and common goals. And it pays homage to the better angels in us all.
Set in a western town eighty years after the last gunfight, this tale examines the invisible ties that bind us, the families that we create through shared experiences and common goals. And it pays homage to the better angels in us all.
297 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 3, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 11, 2018
When someone recommends a book that was written by a friend or a relative, I'm eager to read it, as I have a great respect for anyone who is able to actually finish writing a book, even in this era of self-publishing. I also have low expectations for such a book, as they are often poorly-written, under-edited, or incomplete, given this era of self-publishing. In the case of this particular book, I bought it because the author's sister mentioned its existence. I had never met the gentleman, but I wanted to support his efforts by purchasing a copy.
I was surprised and delighted that this book reads like a "real book." I would have rated this highly regardless of who wrote it or how I heard of it. It is a great story, with believable characters, skillfully realized.
The book is a delightful mix of a tall-tale, historical fiction, coming of age, and underdog adventure. The narrator has a believable perspective, and a wide variety of characters act as one might expect given their attributes and motivations. I don't even want to mention any specifics or spoilers, so if you read this you can experience it without preconceived notions.
I was surprised and delighted that this book reads like a "real book." I would have rated this highly regardless of who wrote it or how I heard of it. It is a great story, with believable characters, skillfully realized.
The book is a delightful mix of a tall-tale, historical fiction, coming of age, and underdog adventure. The narrator has a believable perspective, and a wide variety of characters act as one might expect given their attributes and motivations. I don't even want to mention any specifics or spoilers, so if you read this you can experience it without preconceived notions.
December 12, 2017
I met the author, Rick Seiwert, at a local author “meet and greet at a Tucson bookstore where we traded books. I can say without reservation, I was blown away by his multi-layered story, his characters, and his masterful prose.
Set locally in the Tucson area, Seiwert’s characters are original and true and the action draws the reader quickly into the story. While it is largely narrated by university student Leo Knoffelmacher, his neighbor, Kenny Lynch, who shares one-half of the duplex he’s renting, is one of the most memorable characters I’ve ever encountered. Seriously affected by a head injury in Vietnam, Kenny does not speak clearly and, even though he lives independently, sometimes it is difficult. Kenny is a surprisingly gifted, though a physically and mentally limited, human being.
Seiwert describes the desert with prose that sings: “The hulking saguaro, like faceless giants in a child-drawn pose—one arm up, one arm down—were sprinkled amid the bare, crumbly-rock stretches, haughtily assuming their role as silent sentinels. Creeping lines of prickly pear and explosions of spiny-tendrilled ocotillos were present in lesser numbers, as were the squat, bulging barrels with their long, fish-hook barbs. All were surrounded and entangled with sinewy, grasslike weeds that bore ether thorn, thistle, or burr.” This is, indeed, our desert around Tucson.
When Leo’s desert exploration leads him to Rancho Alvarado, a small ranch nestled against the mountains, he is drawn into a struggle to protect a sacred site from an unscrupulous bureaucrat. Along with Kenny and the “Fifth Street Irregulars,” neighbors who gather regularly to party on the porch of the duplex, they set out to protect it.
It is a powerful story, with echoes of Edward Abbey’s Monkey Wrench Gang, but altogether original. Seiwert balances tension with humor and introduces a cast of characters who are unlike any others you’ve encountered in your reading. I can’t recommend this book highly enough. It is superb in all respects.
Set locally in the Tucson area, Seiwert’s characters are original and true and the action draws the reader quickly into the story. While it is largely narrated by university student Leo Knoffelmacher, his neighbor, Kenny Lynch, who shares one-half of the duplex he’s renting, is one of the most memorable characters I’ve ever encountered. Seriously affected by a head injury in Vietnam, Kenny does not speak clearly and, even though he lives independently, sometimes it is difficult. Kenny is a surprisingly gifted, though a physically and mentally limited, human being.
Seiwert describes the desert with prose that sings: “The hulking saguaro, like faceless giants in a child-drawn pose—one arm up, one arm down—were sprinkled amid the bare, crumbly-rock stretches, haughtily assuming their role as silent sentinels. Creeping lines of prickly pear and explosions of spiny-tendrilled ocotillos were present in lesser numbers, as were the squat, bulging barrels with their long, fish-hook barbs. All were surrounded and entangled with sinewy, grasslike weeds that bore ether thorn, thistle, or burr.” This is, indeed, our desert around Tucson.
When Leo’s desert exploration leads him to Rancho Alvarado, a small ranch nestled against the mountains, he is drawn into a struggle to protect a sacred site from an unscrupulous bureaucrat. Along with Kenny and the “Fifth Street Irregulars,” neighbors who gather regularly to party on the porch of the duplex, they set out to protect it.
It is a powerful story, with echoes of Edward Abbey’s Monkey Wrench Gang, but altogether original. Seiwert balances tension with humor and introduces a cast of characters who are unlike any others you’ve encountered in your reading. I can’t recommend this book highly enough. It is superb in all respects.
July 4, 2018
This novel made me think of the friends I have made, some with whom I have stayed in touch, but too many I have lost contact with. While reading the book, I wondered how it would all come together, and in the end Rick Seiwert wove the strands of his story together seamlessly. I would like to know which characters and events are fictional and which are fact. And gee, you just have to love Kenny!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews