Like so many refugees from the social and political turmoil of 1960s America, Frank Noal heads out looking for a new sense of self and place. Emigrating to Gloucester, Massachusetts, the world renowned fishing port, he works as a part time maintenance man and bartender at what remains of the North Shore’s last grand hotel, Rackliffe House located on Rocky Neck. Here, Frank meets Donna Pearce, a madcap expressionist painter and becomes involved in a volatile and voluble affair with the Gloucester native. As their relationship develops amidst the eclectic mix of artists, fishermen, poets and tourists frequenting the subterranean bar at Rackliffe House, it becomes apparent to both Frank and Donna that the mysterious history of the hotel is the perfect venue for the misdeeds of Jack Carson, Frank’s former college roommate and the hotel’s manager. With the assistance of their friend, the avuncular gay desk clerk, Harley Fenton, Frank and Donna finally uncover the facts regarding Jack’s import-export endeavors. Driven by the obtuse relationships these characters develop, the story winds to its unexpected and explosive climax and then concludes in the Twenty First Century with a glimpse at what their lives have become. Saucy and rich with humor, this tale explores the emotions and forces that caused so many baby boomers to reconsider their futures in so many different ways. Spiced with the allegories of Frank’s boyhood friend, an Abenaki storyteller, and the poetry of a shell shocked and beleaguered Viet Nam veteran the book presents a tightly woven appraisal of a unique time in a unique place.
I write and paint with passion, ignoring as many rules as possible except one. Get the idea across succinctly, by whatever means are at hand. Then trust viewer and reader instinct to grasp the message. If they have to work a little, hey that never killed anyone.
I enjoy the abandon with which children approach art. There are few things more gratifying than seeing the fresh, unabridged expressions of emotional worlds. As story tellers, they are energetic and exciting. We, as adults, can learn a lot from them when we look and listen.
