Michael Baron on Crossing the Bridge

Readers, please join me welcoming Michael Baron, author of Crossing the Bridge, who’s guest blogging here today! As you may remember from his first post here last year, Michael’s previous book When You Went Away received rave reviews upon its release.

About his upcoming release Crossing the Bridge – Hugh Penders has been stuck in neutral for nearly a decade since his brother Chase died. He carries with him two secrets that he has never been able to share with anyone. When Hugh’s father falls ill, Hugh must return to home where he once again meets and falls in love with Chase’s girlfriend, Iris. But the ghost of Chase haunts both of them. And when each reveals a truth the other never knew, their lives will change forever. Charged by the power of desire and the impact of loss, Crossing the Bridge is a soulful, romantic novel that will speak to you deeply.

My new novel, Crossing the Bridge, is about a man who returns to his hometown to face the scars of his past and get a second chance with the woman he never had the opportunity to love. A big portion of this novel is about families. The main character, Hugh Penders, always considered himself to be second best to his brother Chase. His parents always seemed more enamored of Chase, and Chase, though the younger sibling, always seemed to rule the household.

I find the nature of families fascinating. In fact, I find families so fascinating that I’m finishing the first of a series of family novels right now (shameless plug within this shameless plug: the novel is called Leaves and it will be out in the fall). Since we’re just coming out of the holidays, it seems we all spend a little more time thinking about family this time of year. Sadly, many of these thoughts are not happy ones. For whatever reason, I saw far more articles, blog posts, and television shows about dreading being with your family during the holidays this year than ever before. It’s entirely possible that these were always out there and that I just wasn’t paying attention to them until now. It’s also possible that the abundance of these is a sign of the amped-up anxiety and disquiet that seems pervasive in the culture right now.

My first reaction to all of this grumbling was to be thankful that I didn’t feel the same way. I actually look forward to getting together with my family. My older sister is one of the most generous spirits I’ve ever met and her children are accomplished and interesting. My cousin is a powerhouse who has overcome adversity and exudes possibility. At Christmas, twenty-three people gathered around our dinner table (well, technically, our dinner table and two folding tables laid end-to-end and cleverly decorated by my wife) and I wanted to spend time with every single one of them.

But then I realized that this gathering was the result of a process that began with the same sense of family-dread that the writers and producers had been talking about. Over the years, I had effectively weeded out the family I could no longer stand to be with. I hadn’t seen my brother or his two boorish sons in years. The cousin I adore is the only cousin with whom I have any contact. Of the twenty-three people at our family Christmas table, more than a third of them weren’t actually family at all. Instead, they were friends who had become family.

What is it about the intimacy of familial relationships that causes so many of them to fail, or, even worse, fester? Our families offer us the safest of harbors yet at the same time leave us with our deepest wounds. I find this endlessly interesting and I’m sure it will intrigue me forever.

I agree with you, Michael, one hundred percent. The other day I was listening to someone talking with zeal about mysteries of space and time. And my one thought was that we humans still haven’t been able to figure out something at once as simple and complex like love, relationships, family. To even think of attempting to solve the mysteries of the universe seems somehow over-ambitious and trivial at the same time.

Thank you so much for stopping by today, Michael, and also thanks to your publisher for arranging this. I look forward to hosting you again when Leaves is released in the Fall.

GIVEAWAY

The Prize

A signed copy of Michael’s book, The Journey Home (release date – May 2010). The copy will be sent as soon as the book comes off press.

To Enter
Tell me, how did you spend your holidays? At home, alone, with family and friends, working? Details are welcome and winner will be picked based on their answer, and not randomly.

Please list your email address within your comment so that you can be notified should you be chosen as a winner
Readers who’ve won here in the last 3 months are not eligible to win, but are more than welcome to leave a comment.
For Extra Entries

Please leave a NEW comment for each extra entry you do.
1 ENTRY – Subscribe to A Book Blogger’s Diary feed
1 ENTRY – Subscribe to A Book Blogger’s Diary Email Updates
1 ENTRY – Add A Book Blogger’s Diary Button (see right sidebar) to your blog
1 ENTRY – Add A Book Blogger’s Diary text link to your blog roll
1 ENTRY – Add A Book Blogger’s Diary to your Technorati Favorites
1 ENTRY – Become a fan of A Book Blogger’s Diary on Facebook
1 ENTRY – Follow this blog 
DAILY ENTRY – Follow A Book Blogger’s Diary on Twitter AND tweet this giveaway @callmeabookworm
10 ENTRIES – Blog about this giveaway including links to the Sponsor and this giveaway
UNLIMITED ENTRIES – Comment on any non-giveaway post. Comment here with the title of that post for each you do. 

Deadline   Midnight CST of February 8, 2010.

Eligibility  US only.

Please read the Disclaimer. Good luck!
Note – This book was received for review/feature consideration.
——————————————————————————–
If you like this post, then please consider subscribing to my Full Feed RSS.
You can also Subscribe by Email and have new posts sent directly to your inbox.