When September Comes

by Andrew J. Salat


Formats

Softcover
$21.95
$15.50
E-Book
$5.95
Softcover
$15.50

Book Details

Language : English
Publication Date : 4/19/2002

Format : Softcover
Dimensions : 5x8
Page Count : 488
ISBN : 9780759684713
Format : E-Book
Dimensions : E-Book
Page Count : 488
ISBN : 9780759684706

About the Book

When September Comes, centers on three generations of spirited women whose lives are tragically overshadowed by a genetic flaw. Valiant ladies who find amusing ways to surmount life’s obstacles to eke out happiness. They do this by beguiling those they love, and play the role so well, they believe it themselves. It is this sorcery, along with their teasing ways that easily win the hearts of their men.

Unknown to their loved ones, they push into their subconscious the acknowledge of dying young. Curiously, this feat enables them to see humor in ordinary things, as they try to compress a lifetime of joy into few precious years. When their men find they had been hoodwinked into playing their game, they learn too late the women they loved were only complying lambs, awaiting a September which never came.

Yet, their story is more about living than dying, its theme is partially based on the lives of real people. Like most chronicles, this one encompasses the joy of growing up, the mysterious stirring of first love, and the inevitable heartache that touches most of us. How these valiant women and the men they love confront their predestined fates, could make this a story not soon forgotten.


About the Author

Andrew Salat was born in what was then called Czechoslovakia. At age twelve, he came to America to join his dairyman father in Western Pennsylvania. Young Andrew saw life in America as a continuing festival. If being schooled on both sides of the Atlantic could broaden ones mind, his growing up amongst the diverse cultures of a small steel-town helped him become a better American.

World War II temporarily interrupted Andrew's American dream. Wounded in a North African Campaign, he went home on leave and married his fiancée, Anne Kandrick. Honorably discharged after the war, Andrew at his father's urging returned to his small steel town of Donora. The well-traveled couple saw little future in their smoky town and decided to fulfill their postwar dreams in California.

Two years at the prestigious Los Angles Art Center helped to broaden Andrew's perspective. Though art had always been his interest, becoming a parent forced him to seek a more secure position with the Postal Service. Evening classes in real estate investment taught him to take advantage of a booming California economy.

With a full-time job and another of managing properties, Andrew's never-ending search for fascinating hobbies kept him busy. Art collecting, astronomy and electronics to name some. To house their classic art collection, the couple built a Mediterranean-style villa on a California mountaintop. Their ballroom-sized living room delighted the fun-loving Anne, while Andrew's dream of an observatory complete with a research-grade telescope became a reality.

Tragedy struck when Anne was diagnosed with cancer. The couple was forced to rethink not only their immediate goals, but the very meaning of life. After the initial shock wore off, they chose to tour Europe. On their return, they found others dwelling under the same ominous cloud. Their frequent parties at their spacious mountaintop home became a way to compress a lifetime into the years remaining.

Four years after they had moved into their new home, Anne's death stunned Andrew and many others in their mountaintop community. A gracious lady they had all loved had given her last party and now the hilltop ballroom they all had enjoyed became silent. Anne’s passing did not go unnoticed on their enchanted knoll of pink granite boulders and Manzanita trees. The Irises and daffodils she had planted on the pathways missed her girlish voice as she coddled them. The towering cedar she had put in as seedling reaffirms the strength with she had faced those last poignant years. Only the weeping willow by the colonnaded porch gives a different message: Its languid branches wave in the gentle breeze as if in a prayer to the star-studded heavens above.

Alone on a mountaintop, Andrew worked through his grief by writing a how-to book, complete with drawings and photos. Since not many readers could afford to build a Mediterranean Villa, an editor advised him to publish his book on the World Wide Web.

Andrew began a second, an epic novel based partially on real life. Simon and Northrup released, When September Comes in December 2000. His sequel, After September will soon be ready for publication. Between his many rewrites, Andrew discovered the wonderful world of short stories. His Strawberry Hill was accepted by Orpheus Romance. The seven others will be published in a book called, The Auction and Other Love Stories.

Though war and personal tragedy have somewhat tempered his philosophy, Mr. Salat's writing reflects an easy pace with light touches of humor, making the celebration of life an adventure many dream of. The author has since remarried and resides in the San Diego area, with his wife, Ruth.