For nearly 30 years Sean Arthur Joyce has worked in the Kootenays as a freelance journalist while also writing poetry.
Now Joyce has published a novel, Mountain Blues, that draws from his experiences.
“Mountain Blues is the story of a small village in the Valhalla Mountains that must struggle to save its emergency ward from government cutbacks,” Joyce says. “When reporter Roy Breen arrives in little Eldorado after 15 years working at a big city newspaper, burnt out and ready for a slower pace of life, he is soon pitched into the town’s crisis. He must decide whether to blur the lines between objective observer and activist, knowing that closure of the village’s ER could mean the end of the community. Along the way, he meets the many eccentric yet loveable characters that inhabit Eldorado and its surrounding communities. It’s that rare creature—an activist story that’s fun!”
Following a launch in Calgary on May 31, Joyce will be embarking on a tour to promote Mountain Blues, which has been likened to Stephen Leacock’s Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town. He will be reading from the book at Creston Public Library on Monday, June 4, at 7 pm. In July, Joyce will be part of the Elephant Mountain Literary Festival in Nelson.
Joyce drew on nearly 30 years’ experience as a freelance journalist and a lifetime Kootenay resident to craft the story. His experience as a poet also figures strongly in the prose. Renowned Canadian poet and author Gary Geddes writes: “Joyce brings a unique toolbox of writing skills to bear in Mountain Blues that makes for crisp, lyrical prose, an engaging narrative, memorable characters, including an emotionally articulate cat, and a lightness of touch that is as surprising as it is delightful.”
Nelson author Brian D’Eon gave Mountain Blues a strongly favourable review. “Joyce cannot hide the love he has for his characters. He loves not just their strengths but their flaws, their best intentions, their sweet humanity.”
To order the book visit the NeWest Press website at https://newestpress.com/books/mountain-blues, your local independent bookstore, Chapters, Barnes & Noble or Amazon or Amazon.