Red Sky at Morning by Richard Bradford (October 19 - 24, 2004)
Using a Borders gift card a friend of mine gave me, I just happened to pick it off the shelf in the store. I hadn't heard about the book before or read a thing about it. It was a serendipitous choice because the book now ranks among my favorites.
It’s the story of Josh Arnold, a seventeen-year-old boy from Mobile , Alabama . Set in 1944 during WWII, the timeline lasts one year and begins when Josh’s father Frank, a shipbuilder, receives his volunteer assignment for the U.S. Navy. While he is gone, Frank moves his wife, Ann, and his son to the family summer home in Sagrado , New Mexico . Ann Arnold does not adapt well to life in Sagrado, missing her husband and Southern friends. In contrast, Josh immediately makes close friends with Steenie and Marcia immediately, grows to love the food, and learns about the culture of the people of Sagrado. He finds an enemy too in Chango Lopez, a bully who later evolves into a good student and friend.
As the year goes by, Ann begins drinking sherry to cope with her problems, an unwanted houseguest appears in Sagrado, and Josh meets an artist who is his father’s friend. After Ann fires the Montoyas, a couple hired by Frank to help at the house, Josh writes to his father. Frank invents a way for Josh to take charge of the family and property as the head of the household. With help from his father’s brief letters and appearance at the beginning of the book and his experiences in Sagrado, Josh matures.
Many of the events in the story are steeped in sadness, but it’s impossible to dwell in the sadness because all the leading characters face adversity with irreverent humor and strength. The dialogue and banter in this book are true to life, and were a joy to read. There are few books that really make me laugh, and this is one of them. I strongly recommend reading it.
