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Till the Rivers All Run Dry
In 1941, when thirteen-year-old Ricky Parker's family is uprooted from their home in Arkansas and relocated to Venezuela, Ricky thinks his life is over. But what he finds in a rough and tumble oil camp on the banks of Lake Maracaibo is the adventure of a lifetime. An adventure filled with Nazi spies, treachery, betrayal, true love, and even murder. While touching on issues that remain relevant today, such as racism and America's reliance on foreign oil, this coming-of-age novel is a page turning, high-octane suspense tale of star-crossed young lovers set in exotic wartime Venezuela.
274 pages, Paperback
Published July 27, 2016
About the author
Jim Lester
16 books1 followerJim Lester is a novelist and historian who grew up in Little Rock, Arkansas. As a boy, he loved sports and attended Hall High School, where he played on the basketball team. As an adult, Lester played tournament level tennis and racquetball along with endless pickup basketball games in gyms across the country.
He holds an undergraduate degree from Southern Methodist University, a master’s degree from Vanderbilt University and a Ph.D. in American history from Washington State University. For many years he pursed an academic career, teaching at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and Denver Academy, a special high school for young people with learning disabilities. He also served as the head of the social studies program for the school.
Dr. Lester has had a lifelong love of writing and popular fiction and is the author of Fallout, an action packed young adult novel published by Bantam/Delacorte. The book appeared in both hardback and paperback editions and Booklist called the novel “a clever coming-of-age story . . . Salingeresque in spirit.” Lester’s writing credits also feature six books on regional history including A Man for Arkansas: Sid McMath and the Southern Reform Tradition; Hendrix College: A Centennial History and Greater Little Rock: A Pictorial History. The latter book is considered the definitive story of the capital city of Arkansas and received a major grant from the Arkansas Endowment for the Humanities.
Lester’s most recent book, Hoop Crazy: College Basketball in the 1950s ties college basketball into the social and cultural history of the fifties and has been called “a wonderful book for anyone who looks back at the golden age of America.”
The author is married to his high school sweetheart and resides in Denver, Colorado, where he hikes the Rocky Mountains, walks his cocker spaniel and is an avid reader. He is also the father of three sports loving sons.
He holds an undergraduate degree from Southern Methodist University, a master’s degree from Vanderbilt University and a Ph.D. in American history from Washington State University. For many years he pursed an academic career, teaching at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and Denver Academy, a special high school for young people with learning disabilities. He also served as the head of the social studies program for the school.
Dr. Lester has had a lifelong love of writing and popular fiction and is the author of Fallout, an action packed young adult novel published by Bantam/Delacorte. The book appeared in both hardback and paperback editions and Booklist called the novel “a clever coming-of-age story . . . Salingeresque in spirit.” Lester’s writing credits also feature six books on regional history including A Man for Arkansas: Sid McMath and the Southern Reform Tradition; Hendrix College: A Centennial History and Greater Little Rock: A Pictorial History. The latter book is considered the definitive story of the capital city of Arkansas and received a major grant from the Arkansas Endowment for the Humanities.
Lester’s most recent book, Hoop Crazy: College Basketball in the 1950s ties college basketball into the social and cultural history of the fifties and has been called “a wonderful book for anyone who looks back at the golden age of America.”
The author is married to his high school sweetheart and resides in Denver, Colorado, where he hikes the Rocky Mountains, walks his cocker spaniel and is an avid reader. He is also the father of three sports loving sons.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 2, 2017
I didn’t realise this was a children’s/young adult novel when I requested it from NetGalley, but having been sent it I felt duty bound to read and review it. And I’m so glad I did for in spite of my misgivings I found it a very well-written and interesting book. It’s narrated by 13-year-old Ricky Parker whose father relocates the family from Arkansas, where Ricky is very happy and settled, to Venezuela where his father has got a job on the oil fields. It’s 1941 and oil is vital for the US, not least because soon they will be entering the war. Ricky expects life to be pretty boring in this small oil town but he couldn’t be more wrong. What follows in an exciting adventure story which incorporates some weighty themes – racism, corporate greed, oppression of indigenous peoples – which in spite of their age-appropriate treatment are of interest to adult readers as well. The setting is vividly described and life for the workers and their families is conveyed with much empathy. Although the action is a little melodramatic at times, it is nevertheless an engaging and enjoyable novel for readers of any age.
September 11, 2016
GNAB On September 10, 2016 I received a free electronic copy of this middle grade Mystery/Adventure novel from Netgalley and Jim Lester along with Mariposa Book Transformation Services in exchange for an honest review. Thank you, for sharing your work with me.
This tale finds it's beginning in El Dorado, Arkansas in July, 1941 and our protagonist is a 13 year old boy who loves baseball and comic books. Big for his age, Ricky is the son of Chester "Ches" and Dixie Parker. Ches is a former oil drilling supervisor for Murphy Oil until he ran into a conflict with the treatment of his workers, and quit. Now the oil company - and the military machine in Washington, DC - need his expertise in the American owned oil fields in Venezuela to increase the production of oil needed in Europe to fuel the Allies in their battle against Hitler.
GNAB This is a tale of coming of age in an age of war. Removed from anything familiar the Parker family settle into the Creole Oil company town in Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela where they face giant lizards and baby killing tarantulas and possibly even revolting Motilone Indians, ousted from their island homes by Creole Oil and a serious lack of proper medical supplies. But 'Uncle' Harry is there, there is a school of sorts and Saturday baseball when they can find enough players to field two teams - not to mention Hannah Oudt-which makes Ricky more inclined to persevere. Dixie can usually find a game of Bridge and a drink or three at the community club. Life settles into a routine. Until the murder of Mr. Taggart. And then Pearl Harbor.
pub date July 27
rec 10-10
no listed publisher
This tale finds it's beginning in El Dorado, Arkansas in July, 1941 and our protagonist is a 13 year old boy who loves baseball and comic books. Big for his age, Ricky is the son of Chester "Ches" and Dixie Parker. Ches is a former oil drilling supervisor for Murphy Oil until he ran into a conflict with the treatment of his workers, and quit. Now the oil company - and the military machine in Washington, DC - need his expertise in the American owned oil fields in Venezuela to increase the production of oil needed in Europe to fuel the Allies in their battle against Hitler.
GNAB This is a tale of coming of age in an age of war. Removed from anything familiar the Parker family settle into the Creole Oil company town in Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela where they face giant lizards and baby killing tarantulas and possibly even revolting Motilone Indians, ousted from their island homes by Creole Oil and a serious lack of proper medical supplies. But 'Uncle' Harry is there, there is a school of sorts and Saturday baseball when they can find enough players to field two teams - not to mention Hannah Oudt-which makes Ricky more inclined to persevere. Dixie can usually find a game of Bridge and a drink or three at the community club. Life settles into a routine. Until the murder of Mr. Taggart. And then Pearl Harbor.
pub date July 27
rec 10-10
no listed publisher
September 17, 2016
I read this quickly, completely lost in it. It read like the detailed memory of a child on the edge of puberty and WW2, chronicling the boy's move from the US to Venezuela's Lake Maracaibo. Once there, nothing is as promised by his father. Ricky is unpopular, angry, and only happy when he plays baseball. Then he finds the body and things change. The camp where he lives becomes tense. Will war really break out? Will it come to Lake Maracaibo? What about the Germans living on tbe other side of camp? Jim Lester put some subtle details in which made this a great story for me, too. Ricky talks about Doc Savage's adventures at one point. This is a middle grade adventure novel, but anyone into WW2 obscure history will enjoy this too. I did receive this as a read for review, but will be looking up more of Lester's work shortly.
September 4, 2016
I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Enjoyable, light reading, with good characterization and descriptive World War II setting. When his father's company transfers the whole family to Venezuela, dealing with the multiple changes in his life are a challenge for Ricky. The oil camp on Lake Maracaibo is a hotbed of intrigue and possible espionage. His friendship with a German girl complicates things, but Ricky finds that he is more of an adult than he had thought.
Enjoyable, light reading, with good characterization and descriptive World War II setting. When his father's company transfers the whole family to Venezuela, dealing with the multiple changes in his life are a challenge for Ricky. The oil camp on Lake Maracaibo is a hotbed of intrigue and possible espionage. His friendship with a German girl complicates things, but Ricky finds that he is more of an adult than he had thought.
September 22, 2016
Enjoyed the storyline that keep me interested to what was coming next. The characters made me stop and think about about the era of time we need not forget. I was given this book for a honest review.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews