Things In Ditches [Hardcover]

Jimmy Olsen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 2000

A murder mystery novel. The story of Phillip "Dutch" Cleland, a man with a hidden past and a future about to explode in his face. A seemingly average man whose love for two women drives him to such extremes that deception, even murder and suicide are not longer unthinkable.

When a lovely corpse is discovered near Dutch's home town, the nearby ditches begin to yield a harvest of secrets, none of them comforting for Dutch. Soon he is forced to flee for his life, before his past and the police slip a noose around his neck.

Things In Ditches is peopled with small town characters that are so humorous and eccentric, their oddball antics enliven every paragraph and page. A reader can't help but be reeled in by the strange citizens of Willow River, until soon discovering they're really not so different from all of us and Dutch's story is the oldest story on earth; good and evil, betrayal and laughter. And finally, the power of love and friendship, forging one man's determination to overcome all odds, even death.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Reading Olsen reminded me of a book shoved at me at a convention....I didn't put it down until I finished....A little number called The Silence of the Lambs." -- Dave Wood's Book Report

"Lovingly detailed, idiosyncratic, small-town characters appear and disappear, each contributing in some important way to the progress of the story." -- St. Paul Pioneer Press, May 2, 2001

"Things In Ditches....humor tempering serious issue such as deception and guilt, Olsen has....a fast-paced, terrific first novel." -- Minneapolis Star Tribune, May 2, 2001

About the Author

Jimmy Olsen is a native of Hoffman, Minnesota, and has degrees from St. Cloud State University and the University of Alabama. He's worked as a newspaper reporter, editor, and photographer. For nearly forty years, he has been an active scuba diver and instructor, living five years in the Dominican Republic. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 312 pages
• Publisher: North Star Press of St. Cloud (December 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0878391576
• ISBN-13: 978-0878391578
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.4 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,712,252 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jimmy Olsen didn't start writing fiction until he was well past 40. In the tradition of American writers like Jack London and Louis L'Amour, Olsen spent much of his life seeking adventure. He began scuba diving in 1961 at age 13 and continues today. A machine-gunner in Vietnam, after two tours he settled down awhile, married, started a family and graduated college with a BS in English. Still at college, he published his first national story in a diving magazine. A year later he moved his family to Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic where he taught at a private American school and started the Republic's first professional diving school, Scuba Dominican, C por A. Hearing rumors of shipwrecks and gold, Olsen and a small group of adventurers discovered the site of the French Man-O-War Imperial and several other vessels. After five years in the Caribbean, Olsen completed his MA at the University of Alabama and returned to writing, taking a job with a daily newspaper in Athens, Alabama for a year before becoming an editor back home in Minnesota. This lasted four years before the thirst for adventure overtook him again and he was back in the diving business, traveling to dive destinations from the Caribbean to the South Pacific. The snorkeling scene in Thing In Ditches comes directly from the author's own rich experiences. Jimmy Olsen has written two additional novels, Scuba, due to be released next year and YR-71, a Vietnam seafaring adventure set near Da Nang. In addition, he's completed 20 short stories, some set in his native Minnesota and others from around the globe. Several of these have recently been sold and will soon be in print. Olsen continues to travel extensively, returning to the Dominican Republic to dive his old haunts only hours before Hurricane Georges. Equally at home at the keyboard of a computer or his ancient Royal, Olsen spends his writing days in a north woods setting without even the basic comforts such as running water or electricity and at his modern office in the city. He has three children, now grown, and lives with his wife in Minnesota.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Fargo" revisited?, October 17, 2001

By 

Thomas "Reader, Writer, Music Fan" (Bay Area, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Things In Ditches (Paperback)

Perhaps it is the convincingly claustrophobic vision of Minnesota in the winter. Maybe, it has to do with the unselfconsciously quirky characters and their convincingly drawn eccentric reasoning and personalities.

Also, it does not hurt to find a mistery plot as unconcerned about mysteries in the conventional sense as this. In this novel the true mistery lies in trying to follow the minds of its protagonists.

So why is it that the movie "Fargo" keeps insinuating itself as this book grabs a hold of this reader (and I mean that as a supreme praise!)? I read many novels in the hopes of occassionally finding one as terrific as this author's debut work. A truly rewarding read!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Olsen takes us on a fun trip, January 3, 2001

By 

E. Hanson "dakotaguy" (Sartell, MN USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Things In Ditches (Hardcover)

Jimmy Olsen's novel, Things In Ditches, is a great book. Follow Dutch as he tries to figure out what to do after killing his former lover!

Olsen takes us on an adventure as Dutch tries to deal with the consequences of his actions, while being chased by the law and others. I was on the edge of my seat as I turned the pages wondering how it would turn out in the end! I definitely recommend this one!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Author's debut makes 'Ditches' come alive, January 20, 2001

By 

Laura Cook (Nashville, Tennessee) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Things In Ditches (Hardcover)

Want to feel the chill of a Minnesota blizzard without leaving your cozy abode? Want to see what Midwestern characters do when their quiet lives suddenly become mixed up and out of control? Want plot twists that make it impossible to guess the end?

Then read Things in Ditches as soon as you possibly can.

Jimmy Olsen's debut boasts quality story telling in a tone that is decidely northwoods. And you'll read the last page eager to get your hands on anything and everything this talented writer has to offer.

Dutch, Charlie the cop and Walleye will stick in your mind and make you want to visit Willow River to see how the town survived Minnesota-style murder and mayhem.