Bruce Von Stiers

The book world is now being embraced by a whole slew of small publishing houses. One of the better ones in GreyCore Press. They have published books by several first time authors. One of their newest books will be released in October of 2002. The title of this book is The Water Thief. It is a novel written by Robert Baldwin.

The main character in this book is a man named Jake Woods. He has had several tragedies in his lifetime. When we first meet him, it is 1979 and he is on a hiking expedition. He somehow gets his foot caught under a boulder. He has to cut it off to survive. Then a young woman rescues him. Her name is Ruth. Sometime later they become man and wife.

We learn about Jake and his life through a series of flashbacks. We learn about a troubled sister whose life ends tragically. We find out about how Jake embraced his loss of a foot with the use of a plastic one. We also learn about Jake and Ruth’s son Tay. We find that tragedy has struck at Jake once again; this time through Tay.

Jake leaves his job and Ruth and goes away to a lake that he and Tay had been to a year ago. His friend is supposed to show up, but instead, Ruth does. We find out that life between the two of them isn’t any good any more. What has happened to their lives to drive them apart?

The story tells us of how a series of events drove Jake to this place where he wants to be alone. But there is Ruth to remind him of his sorrow. We find out about another tragedy in Jake’s life, this one affecting both him and Ruth.

Ruth ends up going with Jake on his journey. Together they try to rekindle what was left of their relationship. But will it be that easy? The forces of nature and the couple’s destructive past may well prove fatal to their relationship.

Not only is The Water Thief emotionally gut wrenching, it is also a story of man against nature. Jake will have to face his demons one way or the other. If there is one theme that runs through the book, it is forgiveness. We have to forgive others and ourselves for things that happen in our lives.

I have a teenaged son, so the anguish that Jake feels about his son is very real to me. What would I do if something happened to my son? Would my life be the same? Would my marriage survive? Could I still be truly alive again? This book brought forth those questions in my mind.

As I mentioned earlier, The Water Thief should be available in October of 2002. To check for more current release information, or where to pick up a copy, visit the GreyCore Press web site. It can be found at www.greycore.com.