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Wild Blue Yonder: A Novel of the 1960s

Wild Blue Yonder is the coming-of-age story of Nathaniel Hawthorne Flowers, a smart but sheltered boy from suburban Chicago whose beloved father suddenly dies, resulting in his flunking out of college. Nate receives a draft notice from the Army but after some “encouragement” from his mother, decides to enlist in the Air Force instead. It is 1965. Nate is 20 years old. Airman Flowers goes not to Vietnam but Germany, straight into a military Catch-22. His assignment: writing stories as a reporter for the Stars and Stripes newspaper which will never see print. Nate's adventure deepens as he and his fellow troops try to understand why they're there, the military mindset, and the massive social turbulence of 1960s America. Existential, psychedelic, funny, and laced with rock 'n' roll, Wild Blue Yonder is the story of Nate's quest for personal and spiritual values while discovering the meaning of family, friendship, and the love of the girl he left behind. "I could not put this novel down, and I did not want the journey to end. This is a well-written, engaging, very funny, thoughtful and bold first novel for this author.” - Rita Peterson “A coming-of-age story set in the 1960's, Wild Blue Yonder offers what finding yourself really means set against the turmoil of a time, place, and culture so different and similar to today. I heartily recommend this book!” - Casie “Overall, a great read, highly recommended.” - Michael Fedison
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Wild Blue Yonder: A Novel of the 1960s
2015
May


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May 25, 2015

 

Nate finally extricates himself from the grips of the Air Force, but in a parting shot is warned that he may not like the Real World; in fact, he’s told many troops re-up within a few months. Why is that? Nate wonders. He remembered seeing a wall plaque that read “If Man Has His Freedom, He Has Everything.” If that’s so, why would someone give up his freedom and having a life he can call his own, just to return to the confining aspects of military life? Nonetheless, Nate soon finds that his freedom is fleeting and conditional. Home Sweet Home? Right. What’s Uncle Ned, the philosophy professor, have to say about all this? Why are Chicagoans so cold? And who is that, standing quietly on the sidelines, three thousand miles away in the warm California sun, waiting for Nate’s homecoming drama to play out? Aw, you know who.

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