FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASECONTACT INFORMATION:Susie@Schade-Brewer.com Phone: (816) 293-2633 vFax: (508) 216-7687
The
Sacrifice of the Sage Hen: A Novel of the American West by Susie Schade-Brewer, Adrian MO Published
by Swimming Kangaroo Books, Arlington TX dindy@swimmingkangaroo.com
Trade Paperback $13.99 ISBN:
978-1-934041-56-7
Electronic $3.95 ISBN: 978-1-934041-55-0Kindle $3.19
Visit the website at www.Schade-Brewer.com
Grandmother’s Stories Ignite a Flame That Lasts for
Fifty Years
If We But Listen,
The Stories of Our Ancestors Can Teach Us Valuable Lessons
Susie Schade-Brewer
remembers precious little of her paternal grandmother, Jesse Schade (pronounced
Shady).But some vivid memories have
lived on. One of the most vivid was of
sitting on her lap in a rocking chair beside a window, a red and black
checkered blanket between them. Mesmerized by her stories, Susie remembers
staring wide-eyed out the window, the old woman’s word pictures permanently
etching details in her mind of another time and a faraway place.
“Our house burned clear down,” her grandma told
her.“And our family had to move
on.I rode on the tailgate of the wagon,
and I remember all the dust and how it coated my bare feet and legs.Papa gave me the job of holding the rope of
the milk cow.We traveled for many
days.It was hot, so papa made us get up
early.He hitched the two red mules to
the wagon.Mama tied the butter churn
and chicken crate to the side, then shimmied brother inside.”
As the years passed, Susie
often would visualize that little girl in the story, sitting cross-legged
beside a campfire kept burning with wood and cattle dung, smoke encircling the
stew pot that her mother stirred as darkness fell over their covered wagon.Contemplating her grandmother’s earlier
experiences prompted Susie to do much reading on the era of the western
migration, the pioneers and the ‘old west’.Through her research, she came to understand the day-to-day trials these
people faced when they traveled cross-country.Inclimate weather, wild animals, accidental shootings, raging rivers, disease,
deprivations of food and supplies – these were only some of the many
rudimentary ingredients that comprised their every day life.
As often happens when one
reads of another’s world, life-lessons reveal themselves.We come to appreciate more fully our lives as
modern-day folks.No matter what our
world dishes up to us today, it is nothing compared with the struggles our
forefathers and foremothers endured. It
is only by their stamina and determination that our life and world is better today.
Out this month, this historical
novel for first-time novelist Susie Schade-Brewer delves into her favorite
period of history. It is a story of one spirited
young woman’s courage, passion, and personal growth.Dealing with a private crisis of identity, she
demands that her dreams will not be ignored. This story will appeal to anyone young or old,
whose aspirations and hopes have been swallowed up by those of another, and who
must fight to defend their own voice.
- MORE -
Summary
of the Book:Inside Charlotte Mary West – called Charlie
-a voice taunts. It says if she is ever to be happy, she must leave
Independence, Missouri and the life that she was bartered into at the tender
age of 15. The whispers say she must
return to the West and the mountains where she was born.Married to a storekeeper in the embarkation
town of Independence, she feels chained to a life devoid of excitement or
adventure.Her husband’s only ambition
is to make fistfuls of money selling supplies to the pioneers before they head
down the Oregon or Santa Fe Trail.But
waiting on customers and stocking shelves has never been Charlie’s idea of
adventure. More than anything else, she just wants to take charge of her
own future, and she sets out to convince her husband to join the wagon train
headed to Oregon’s Willamette Valley.
As
was often the case in the 19th century, though, the preferences of a
woman were ignored. Unfortunate for some
– fortunate for her - Charlie inherited a gift from her father, Micah Fremont,
ex-mountain man and Army Scout.He had
always advocated free speech and dreams.Full of the spunk and independence passed on to her, Charlie determines
her dream will not die.
The novel takes place in 1859, pre-Civil War
Missouri. Even before the talk of war
surfaces, the townspeople have become restless - the effects of prejudice and
hate. Missouri, it has already been decided, will support slavery.Kansas, however, is still up for grabs.Rioting has erupted across both borders, murders
and burnings, and much blood has been spilled. Black versus white – slave or freeman.And in the midst of it all, one young woman’s
personal crisis.
Then tragedy strikes.A fire comes off the dry prairie and ravages
half of Independence. Many buildings
including West’s Mercantile burn to the ground. Some of the townspeople
are injured – and a few die, including Charlie’s husband, Grant.
Devastated, this nineteen-year old woman must face the fact that she is now a
widow, with no means of support - and quite unexpectedly - a mother to an
orphaned mixed-race child.Suddenly her
once-fanciful dreams of going west have little meaning.But can she let them go?
Dirks Braelen is on the run from his life as a
hired gun in Texas. He is ready to hang up his holster and try to find some
peace for his soul. He meets a young freckled-faced woman with strawberry
blonde hair, and he wonders if she might be his key to finding happiness.However, even though he may be ready to leave
his old life behind, the people he knew then may not let him.
Charlie is trying to escape her present. Dirks is trying to escape his past. To find
happiness, they both reach back and remember a story from Charlie's father and try
to understand the meaning of the
sacrifice of the sage hen.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:Susie Schade-Brewer writes from her home in
Adrian, Missouri.She has written
award-winning short stories and published numerous articles in periodicals such
as Grit, The Chronicle of the Old West and The Lake Country Journal.She is a member of:
When she is not writing
fiction, she is operating a professional writing service called TPW Writing
Services (www.TPWWritingServices.com),
doing copywriting (advertising copy) and resumes.She is available for interview or book
signings. (816) 293-2633/Email Susie@Schade-Brewer.com.
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