Otter St. Onge and the Bootleggers: A Tale of Adventure

by Alec Hastings

On the eve of Vermont’s Great Flood of 1927, rain falls on northern Lake Champlain. Otter’s father has been missing since World War I, and then a letter arrives with surprising news. Royal St. Onge may be alive! Otter and Granddad load a canoe with Mississquoi Moonbeam and paddle across Goose Bay to rendezvous at the family camp, but Otter’s father is nowhere to be found, and bullet holes scar the cabin walls. The trail finally leads to a cutthroat gang called the Crows who will kill every member of Royal’s family unless Otter can stop them.

436 pages, Paperback

First published May 2, 2013

About the author

Alec Hastings grew up in Happy Valley—yes, it’s true—in the Vermont foothills just west of the Connecticut River. Perhaps his happiest neighbor was the locally famous Warren Bumps or “Bumpy,” a logger and jack-of-all-trades who stood as large in the author’s imagination as Too Tall in Otter St. Onge and the Bootleggers. Warren’s father, Elmer, milked twenty-five Jerseys on a small farm near the top of Sugar Hill, and on that farm the author earned his first George Washington from the kindly old man with the twinkling blue eyes. The author’s grandfather, Scott Hastings, Sr., and his father, Scott Jr., were also self-reliant hill folk. His grandfather was driving logs out of the woods with horses at age fourteen. He taught his grandson the names of trees, how to sharpen an ax, and how to drive a war-surplus Jeep. His father taught him how to shoot a rifle, use carpentry tools, and believe in himself. His grandmother Josephine filled him up with sour cream cookies and fresh baked bread! All these elders told him stories and set him on the path to telling his own. He has six children and step-children, and he is happily married to Denise Martin. Retiring from teaching high school English in 2014, he continues to teach writing and storytelling at a community college in the heart of the Green Mountains.

Reviews

[DeniseE]

I really enjoyed this book!!! I picked this book up because the flood of 1927 and bootlegging on Lake Champlain intrigued me. I couldn't be happier with my choice. This is a fairly large book but is a quick read because of the cliff hanging chapters and steady moving adventures. This book is a good fit for a large audience from adolescents to adult. It is a roiling tale reminiscent of the days when story tellers would entertain groups around a fire after a hard days work. The language speaks to the time and place and the story has enough human elements to make this "tale" feel real. I have read this book more than once and would read it again and again and still not tire of it. I have recommended it to many friends and family and we even covered it in our local book club. Everyone I know who has read it has enjoyed it.

[Lulu]

How delightful to read a tale that brings to life the tiny corner of the world where I grew up.

[Elizabeth]

A delightful, action-packed adventure set in VT! Loved by a 12year old boy as much as by his 40-something mother.

[Michael Wood]

An epic historical fiction about adventure, romance, and truth, this is a white knuckled page turner for any young or full adult. Steeped with of Vermont/Champlain history it might even be educational. I certainly learned a few things I didn't know about 'shine!

My favorite line: "The light of dawn was a pale thing creeping on all fours." Gah! Haha.

[Ian]

i love this book it is great and intresting

[Nicky Weirbach]

***Received this book as a First-Reads giveaway. Will post review once finished.***

[Kate]

I enjoyed this book! The story moved along at a good pace and keeps the reader interested. I also really liked that it was set in VT!!

[Faith Casey]

A real adventure tale with action on each page taking place on Lake Champlain.