Wickerby: An Urban Pastoral

("Outside my window, the city lights are taking hold now, ...)

"Outside my window, the city lights are taking hold now, the breeze-brushed, gently pulsating grid. Why is a cemented aggregate of homes arranged in a tall, tight cluster any further from nature than one wood home within the woods? Because it is so thoroughly man-made? But we wouldn't call the towering carpenter ant's nest that I found one day in Wickerby's collapsing southeast corner 'ant-made.' We are no less natural than the next creature except that thinking makes it seem so. There is no such thing as nature. Wickerby would remind me of this. There is just the earth and us, the name-callers, standing upon it, calling those places without us, nature."          Against the backdrop of a tumbledown Brooklyn neighborhood, Charles Siebert, a native Brooklynite and longtime city-dweller, reflects upon the five months he has just spent at Wickerby, an old, collapsing log cabin in the woods of Canada. In vivid, lyrical prose, Siebert relates the events that prompted his sudden departure to Wickerby, and, while recounting the details of his isolated existence there, arrives at a series of stunningly original insights that explore and often explode the classic Romantic distinctions between city and country, man-made and natural. Along the way, the book's episodic, wide-ranging narrative takes us from Brooklyn's rooftops, where "pigeon mumblers" chase their flocks into the sky, to Albert, Wickerby's reclusive caretaker who pilfers the cabin's artifacts for his own yard sales.          In what emerges as a refreshing subversion of the typical log cabin book, this beautifully composed account of a journey away from the city ultimately allows us to view the city anew: not as the traditional antagonist of the natural world, but as a logical and inevitable outgrowth of that world, an entity as wondrous and awe-inspiring as anything found in nature.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0609602373/?tag=2022091-20

Wickerby: An Urban Pastoral by Siebert, Charles (1999) Paperback

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B011MEG7EA/?tag=2022091-20

A Man After His Own Heart: A True Story

(Somewhere on this earth tonight, somewhere, I believe, no...)

Somewhere on this earth tonight, somewhere, I believe, not very far from me, there is a person whose heart I’ve touched. A person whose heart I’ve held in my hand. . . . So begins A Man After His Own Heart, an extraordinary narrative by acclaimed author, essayist, and poet Charles Siebert on that most elusive of topics--the human heart. On a rainy December night one recent winter, Siebert was given the rare opportunity to accompany a team of surgeons both in the harvesting of a human heart from the body of a young woman who'd recently died of a brain aneurysm, and in the subsequent delivery and implantation of that heart into the hollowed-out chest of a waiting recipient. Beginning with his harrowing week-long wait for the harvest call to come and culminating with the moment in which one of the implant surgeons suddenly, inexplicably, places the author’s hand on the wildly beating reanimated heart, Siebert manages to weave a seamless series of ruminations and reflections about his own obsession with the heart and his often-estranged father's fatal heart disease; about history's ongoing fascination with this most central and vital organ; and about modern science’s latest startling discoveries concerning both the heart's biological origins and its long-intuited role in the play of our emotions. The resulting mix is nothing less than a radically new, definitive biography of life's most pondered and poeticized protagonist. This story is a journey into the literal and figurative heart of our being, revealing the previously unexplored ways in which the matter of modern science and timeless metaphor meet.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0609602217/?tag=2022091-20

A Man After His Own Heart: A True Story by Siebert, Charles (2004) Hardcover

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B011SIWWK8/?tag=2022091-20

Play Me Something, Angus

(Life is what happens while you’re making other plans. Luc...)

Life is what happens while you’re making other plans. Lucky for Angus McCrory, he has the wit and wisdom to follow his heart when all else fails. In Play Me Something, Angus, a coming-of-age novel crafted with a sharp eye for both emotion and irony, Charles W. Rath takes the young man through tough and turbulent years -- from the birth of hopes and dreams to their agonizing end, and to a new life that was destined all along. For friends Rosemary and Bernice, Angus is the anchor who holds their lives together as the realization dawns that his own hasn’t fallen apart, despite the hurdles put in his way. Join Angus on a journey where good things still happen to good people, and love, in the end, wins true. What they’re saying about ‘Play Me Something, Angus.’ “Charlie Rath’s first novel is a story of love, pain and regret which so often derails one’s life purpose that survival, let alone growth and recovery, is a soul-numbing reality. But Angus McCrory finds the inner strength to overcome the cruel hand of fate that devastates his life goal of becoming a professional jazz pianist. It’s a very worthy, entertaining and motivating read.” Emil Brolick, President and CEO, Wendy’s International. "Play Me Something, Angus is a pleasure to read. You don't have to be a music lover to devour this book. You just have to love wonderful story-telling. Although this is his first novel, Charlie Rath writes like a seasoned pro." Robert L. Shook, New York Times best selling author. “Everyone who has an emotional feeling for what they have done and their accomplishments needs to read Charlie Rath’s book. It will make you appreciate all you have done and the message you are sending to those close to you.” Robert L. Dilenschneider, Chairman, The Dilenschneider Group “Charles Rath has captured the flavor of an era with his first novel. Drawing from his own life experience, he shares with the reader the flavor of his own "coming of age", a struggle with which many readers will identify. Charles motivates us to relive our own triumphs and disappointments, a worthy exercise.” Robert E. Byrnes, musician, psychologist, restaurateur. “There's a depth and tenderness in this novel I look for in everything I read. The humor in Rath's voice belies the sadness and the loneliness of his characters. What at first might appear as a lighthearted romp is in fact a masterful exploration of estrangement, small-town isolation and human nature.” Katherine Taylor, author of RULES FOR SAYING GOODBYE “In Play Me Something, Angus, Charlie Rath writes about family, friendship and dreams — both realized and shattered — with a wit, grace, and humanity rare in today's fiction. Readers will recognize in Rath's characters their own family, friends, nemeses, and neighbors, and be glad to go on this journey with them.” Eric Rickstad - author of REAP and THE SILENT GIRLS

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0990757439/?tag=2022091-20

Play Me Something, Angus

(Life is what happens while you’re making other plans. Luc...)

Life is what happens while you’re making other plans. Lucky for Angus McCrory, he has the wit and wisdom to follow his heart when all else fails. In Play Me Something, Angus, a coming-of-age novel crafted with a sharp eye for both emotion and irony, Charles W. Rath takes the young man through tough and turbulent years -- from the birth of hopes and dreams to their agonizing end, and to a new life that was destined all along. For friends Rosemary and Bernice, Angus is the anchor who holds their lives together as the realization dawns that his own hasn’t fallen apart, despite the hurdles put in his way. Join Angus on a journey where good things still happen to good people, and love, in the end, wins true. What they’re saying about ‘Play Me Something, Angus.’ “Charlie Rath’s first novel is a story of love, pain and regret which so often derails one’s life purpose that survival, let alone growth and recovery, is a soul-numbing reality. But Angus McCrory finds the inner strength to overcome the cruel hand of fate that devastates his life goal of becoming a professional jazz pianist. It’s a very worthy, entertaining and motivating read.” Emil Brolick, President and CEO, Wendy’s International. "Play Me Something, Angus is a pleasure to read. You don't have to be a music lover to devour this book. You just have to love wonderful story-telling. Although this is his first novel, Charlie Rath writes like a seasoned pro." Robert L. Shook, New York Times best selling author. “Everyone who has an emotional feeling for what they have done and their accomplishments needs to read Charlie Rath’s book. It will make you appreciate all you have done and the message you are sending to those close to you.” Robert L. Dilenschneider, Chairman, The Dilenschneider Group “Charles Rath has captured the flavor of an era with his first novel. Drawing from his own life experience, he shares with the reader the flavor of his own "coming of age", a struggle with which many readers will identify. Charles motivates us to relive our own triumphs and disappointments, a worthy exercise.” Robert E. Byrnes, musician, psychologist, restaurateur. “There's a depth and tenderness in this novel I look for in everything I read. The humor in Rath's voice belies the sadness and the loneliness of his characters. What at first might appear as a lighthearted romp is in fact a masterful exploration of estrangement, small-town isolation and human nature.” Katherine Taylor, author of RULES FOR SAYING GOODBYE “In Play Me Something, Angus, Charlie Rath writes about family, friendship and dreams — both realized and shattered — with a wit, grace, and humanity rare in today's fiction. Readers will recognize in Rath's characters their own family, friends, nemeses, and neighbors, and be glad to go on this journey with them.” Eric Rickstad - author of REAP and THE SILENT GIRLS

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0990757439/?tag=2022091-20

Play Me Something, Angus

(Life is what happens while you’re making other plans. Luc...)

Life is what happens while you’re making other plans. Lucky for Angus McCrory, he has the wit and wisdom to follow his heart when all else fails. In Play Me Something, Angus, a coming-of-age novel crafted with a sharp eye for both emotion and irony, Charles W. Rath takes the young man through tough and turbulent years -- from the birth of hopes and dreams to their agonizing end, and to a new life that was destined all along. For friends Rosemary and Bernice, Angus is the anchor who holds their lives together as the realization dawns that his own hasn’t fallen apart, despite the hurdles put in his way. Join Angus on a journey where good things still happen to good people, and love, in the end, wins true. What they’re saying about ‘Play Me Something, Angus.’ “Charlie Rath’s first novel is a story of love, pain and regret which so often derails one’s life purpose that survival, let alone growth and recovery, is a soul-numbing reality. But Angus McCrory finds the inner strength to overcome the cruel hand of fate that devastates his life goal of becoming a professional jazz pianist. It’s a very worthy, entertaining and motivating read.” Emil Brolick, President and CEO, Wendy’s International. "Play Me Something, Angus is a pleasure to read. You don't have to be a music lover to devour this book. You just have to love wonderful story-telling. Although this is his first novel, Charlie Rath writes like a seasoned pro." Robert L. Shook, New York Times best selling author. “Everyone who has an emotional feeling for what they have done and their accomplishments needs to read Charlie Rath’s book. It will make you appreciate all you have done and the message you are sending to those close to you.” Robert L. Dilenschneider, Chairman, The Dilenschneider Group “Charles Rath has captured the flavor of an era with his first novel. Drawing from his own life experience, he shares with the reader the flavor of his own "coming of age", a struggle with which many readers will identify. Charles motivates us to relive our own triumphs and disappointments, a worthy exercise.” Robert E. Byrnes, musician, psychologist, restaurateur. “There's a depth and tenderness in this novel I look for in everything I read. The humor in Rath's voice belies the sadness and the loneliness of his characters. What at first might appear as a lighthearted romp is in fact a masterful exploration of estrangement, small-town isolation and human nature.” Katherine Taylor, author of RULES FOR SAYING GOODBYE “In Play Me Something, Angus, Charlie Rath writes about family, friendship and dreams — both realized and shattered — with a wit, grace, and humanity rare in today's fiction. Readers will recognize in Rath's characters their own family, friends, nemeses, and neighbors, and be glad to go on this journey with them.” Eric Rickstad - author of REAP and THE SILENT GIRLS

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0990757439/?tag=2022091-20

Angus: A Novel

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0609804685/?tag=2022091-20

Angus: A Novel

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0609804685/?tag=2022091-20