This is a haunting story about a man living a secret and escaping his past. It's the late 1960's and Peter Howell is a man on the run who's trying to avoid capture for participating in an anti-war act of terrorism. The crime was sinister - four people dead in an explosion at a company with a military contract - but, that's where the clarity ends and the trail gets muddy.
What follows is a story that any Boomer who remembers the 60's (surely, there are a couple of us) will embrace. Bob does a masterful job of evoking memories of the halcyon days of political activism. When on-campus protests were common place and students burned everything from bras to draft cards.
Where the Wind Blew is a Baby Boomer odyssey told on a grand scale. While it's easy to romanticize this era, Bob doesn't shrink from the task of painting it "warts and all". His portrait captures a colorful past with black and white issues led by activists who have now turned gray.
Author: Bob Sommer
Publisher: Wessex Collective
Penned: June 2008
Time Out: At 323 pages, you'll need more than an afternoon or a couple of evenings. But hey man this book is written about the 60's, so it's cool.
Beach Worthy: Absolutely. Just lather on the SPF 50 before you start, because once you dive into this page-turner you'll forget to reapply.
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