Jane Langton Steeplechase

Steeplechase

Jane Langton

St. Martin's, Nov 2005, $24.95

ISBN: 03129301952

Harvard Professor Homer Kelly has the New York Times number one nonfiction seller, Hen & Chicks. His editor demands he write a follow-up immediately so he can stay on top while the iron is hot. Homer works on his next tome Steeplechase, a look at the historical churches of New England. His wife Mary persuades him to begin the treks starting in Concord and eventually nearby Nashoba. They will find post Civil War aerial photos by the Pratt brothers that showcase a church steeple and a great chestnut tree in Nashoba; while the steeple seems to have vanished without any references besides the pictures, the tree remains standing today.

In 1868 Nashoba, disfigured veteran James Jackson Shaw comes home wanting to simply die. He refuses to see any of his friends and barely tolerates the care of his wife Isabelle and his in-laws including Reverend and Mrs. Gideon. At the same time, Eben Fleet wants Isabelle as his while Ella Viles desires Eben. These disjointed relationships will collide near the Nashoba Chestnut tree that magnificently stands by the First Parrish Church.

In the shadows of Longfellow, STEEPLECHASE alternates chapters so that the audience sees the real events of 1868 vs. the Kelly interpretation of those same activities. This makes for an intriguing historiographic look at how each generation re-interprets the past. Though the 1868 saga is more gripping than the current times fans of a thought provoking, yet very entertaining intelligent mystery will appreciate the latest Homer Kelly thriller.

Harriet Klausner