What do you think?
Rate this book
The Boom Town Saga #1
Back Side of a Blue Moon
Times are hard along the Sabine River, and the little East Texas town of Ashland is crumbling under the weight of the Great Depression. Families are broke and hungry. For many, their last meal may well have been their last meal. Families are giving up and leaving town. Everyone knows the fate that awaits the scattered farms. No one can save Ashland. It is as isolated as the back side of a blue moon.
Into town comes Doc Bannister wearing a straw boater and a white suit. He is the miracle man. He has a homemade doodlebug machine that, he says, can find oil and make them all rich. Oil, he swears, lies beneath the blistered farmstead of Eudora Durant. She thinks Doc is a flim flam man. The Sheriff believes he is a con artist. Both are convinced that Doc has come to town to swindle every dime he can get before hitting the road again. Ashland knows Doc may be crooked, but he has brought hope to a town that had no hope.
Eudora has everything Doc wants. She is a beautiful woman who owns cheap land. In Ashland, she is known as the scarlet woman. Whispers say she murdered her husband. No one has seen him since the night they heard a shotgun blast on her farm. The town wants oil. Doc wants Eudora. But Eudora is too independent and stubborn to fall for the charms of a silver-tongued charlatan.
She holds the fate of Ashland in her hands. Will she let Doc drill? Is there really oil lying deep beneath her sunbaked land? Can Doc find it? Or is he more interested in finding love than oil? What happens when a man with a checkered past comes face to face with a woman whose past is as mysterious as his?
Into town comes Doc Bannister wearing a straw boater and a white suit. He is the miracle man. He has a homemade doodlebug machine that, he says, can find oil and make them all rich. Oil, he swears, lies beneath the blistered farmstead of Eudora Durant. She thinks Doc is a flim flam man. The Sheriff believes he is a con artist. Both are convinced that Doc has come to town to swindle every dime he can get before hitting the road again. Ashland knows Doc may be crooked, but he has brought hope to a town that had no hope.
Eudora has everything Doc wants. She is a beautiful woman who owns cheap land. In Ashland, she is known as the scarlet woman. Whispers say she murdered her husband. No one has seen him since the night they heard a shotgun blast on her farm. The town wants oil. Doc wants Eudora. But Eudora is too independent and stubborn to fall for the charms of a silver-tongued charlatan.
She holds the fate of Ashland in her hands. Will she let Doc drill? Is there really oil lying deep beneath her sunbaked land? Can Doc find it? Or is he more interested in finding love than oil? What happens when a man with a checkered past comes face to face with a woman whose past is as mysterious as his?
438 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 28, 2017
19 people are currently reading
13 people want to read
About the author
Caleb Pirtle III
75 books47 followersCaleb Pirtle III is the author of more than seventy-five books. His novel, Back Side of a Blue Moon, received both the Beverly Hills Book Award and Best of Texas Book Award for Historical Fiction.
He has written four noir thrillers in the Ambrose Lincoln series: Secrets of the Dead, Conspiracy of Lies, Night Side of Dark, and Place of Skulls. . Secrets and Conspiracy are also audiobooks on audible.com. His most recent releases are Back Side of a Blue Moon, Friday Nights Don't Last Forever, Last Deadly Lie, and The Man Who Talks to Strangers. His short stories are featured in three anthologies: Run, Scream, and Bridges.
Pirtle is a graduate of The University of Texas in Austin and became the first student at the university to win the National William Randolph Hearst Award for feature writing. Several of his books and his magazine writing have received national and regional awards.
Pirtle has written two teleplays: Gambler V: Playing for Keeps, a mini-series for CBS television starring Kenny Rogers, Loni Anderson, Dixie Carter, and Mariska Hargitay, and The Texas Rangers, a TV movie for John Milius and TNT television. He wrote two novels for Berkeley based on the Gambler series: Dead Man’s Hand and Jokers Are Wild. He wrote the screenplay for one motion picture, Hot Wire, starring George Kennedy, and John Terry.
Pirtle’s narrative nonfiction, Gamble in the Devil’s Chalk is a true-life book about the fights and feuds during the founding of the controversial Giddings oilfield and From the Dark Side of the Rainbow, the story of a woman’s escape from the Nazis in Poland during World War II. His coffee-table quality book, XIT: The American Cowboy, became the publishing industry’s third best selling art book of all time.
Pirtle was a newspaper reporter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and served ten years as travel editor for Southern Living Magazine. He was editorial director for a Dallas custom publisher for more than twenty-five years.
He has written four noir thrillers in the Ambrose Lincoln series: Secrets of the Dead, Conspiracy of Lies, Night Side of Dark, and Place of Skulls. . Secrets and Conspiracy are also audiobooks on audible.com. His most recent releases are Back Side of a Blue Moon, Friday Nights Don't Last Forever, Last Deadly Lie, and The Man Who Talks to Strangers. His short stories are featured in three anthologies: Run, Scream, and Bridges.
Pirtle is a graduate of The University of Texas in Austin and became the first student at the university to win the National William Randolph Hearst Award for feature writing. Several of his books and his magazine writing have received national and regional awards.
Pirtle has written two teleplays: Gambler V: Playing for Keeps, a mini-series for CBS television starring Kenny Rogers, Loni Anderson, Dixie Carter, and Mariska Hargitay, and The Texas Rangers, a TV movie for John Milius and TNT television. He wrote two novels for Berkeley based on the Gambler series: Dead Man’s Hand and Jokers Are Wild. He wrote the screenplay for one motion picture, Hot Wire, starring George Kennedy, and John Terry.
Pirtle’s narrative nonfiction, Gamble in the Devil’s Chalk is a true-life book about the fights and feuds during the founding of the controversial Giddings oilfield and From the Dark Side of the Rainbow, the story of a woman’s escape from the Nazis in Poland during World War II. His coffee-table quality book, XIT: The American Cowboy, became the publishing industry’s third best selling art book of all time.
Pirtle was a newspaper reporter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and served ten years as travel editor for Southern Living Magazine. He was editorial director for a Dallas custom publisher for more than twenty-five years.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
June 14, 2020
I had read a book in a different series by Caleb Pirtle and I enjoyed it so much, I jumped on the next book I came across, in a different series, not realizing I was reading the books out of order. When I made my discovery, I was too hooked on “Bad Side of a Wicked Moon” to put it down. I loved it, reviewed it, and went on to book one, “Back Side of a Blue Moon.” I have now read all three books in the series, and I’m hoping for more.
In the first book in the series, “Back Side of a Blue Moon,” we are introduced to a population of worn-down folks in East Texas who are being systematically destroyed by the Great Depression, while the brutal drought is hellbent on destroying the earth beneath their feet. But the characters themselves are some of the most colorful, quirky and vivid portraits of survivors I’ve ever come across. They stand up to fate out of habit, since their pride is about the only thing they have left. Until, that is, a flimflam man named Doc Bannister and his faithful sidekick Waskom Brown wander into town and proclaim there is a river of oil beneath their desiccated farmland and they are all soon going to be rich beyond their wildest dreams.
While the characters are interesting and colorful enough to carry the story, there’s actually a strong mystery element that kept me guessing and kept off-balance. I felt like the author was stringing me along, keeping me in suspense as he wove this intricate story to a very satisfying end. But it isn’t the end; it’s just the end of the first installment in this wonderful captivating series. Highly recommend!
In the first book in the series, “Back Side of a Blue Moon,” we are introduced to a population of worn-down folks in East Texas who are being systematically destroyed by the Great Depression, while the brutal drought is hellbent on destroying the earth beneath their feet. But the characters themselves are some of the most colorful, quirky and vivid portraits of survivors I’ve ever come across. They stand up to fate out of habit, since their pride is about the only thing they have left. Until, that is, a flimflam man named Doc Bannister and his faithful sidekick Waskom Brown wander into town and proclaim there is a river of oil beneath their desiccated farmland and they are all soon going to be rich beyond their wildest dreams.
While the characters are interesting and colorful enough to carry the story, there’s actually a strong mystery element that kept me guessing and kept off-balance. I felt like the author was stringing me along, keeping me in suspense as he wove this intricate story to a very satisfying end. But it isn’t the end; it’s just the end of the first installment in this wonderful captivating series. Highly recommend!
May 25, 2020
“Back Side of a Blue Moon,” has it all, history, love and mystery! This beautifully written novel brings to life all the key elements you want to experience in a great story!
If you’re looking for a historical novel comparable to “The Grapes of Wrath”, this is it. “Back Side of a Blue Moon” transports you to the 1930’s before you can utter the word, dustbowl. You’ll be a witness to the depression that took hold of East Texas and feel it stark realities. You’re thrown into a people’s exhaustion and their determined resolve to hold on to what little they have.
If you want a unique, but fulfilling love story, Doc Banister and Eudora Durant will draw you into a world where the chances of finding romance are about as likely as striking it big in a desolate, barren wasteland. Yet there it is, blossoming in the sweat and turmoil, and pulling the reader into its tender depths and the desires of the heart.
But there’s more. There are mysteries woven into the story. You’re kept wondering and fretting about the disappearance of Eudora’s cruel husband. Is he dead? Did Eudora become so desperate that she resorted to killing him? Will she be arrested for a murder that no one can prove? And what about the oil and finding the precious stuff? It’s another riveting element of the tale that will keep you on the edge. As the hole that Doc Banister is drilling gets deeper and machinery keeps failing, as the money runs out and tempers flare, you hope against hope that the venture will pay off.
Caleb Pirtle’s beautifully written novel brings to life all the key elements you want to experience in a great story. The setting? You’re right there, in the midst of the depression, tasting the dirt that’s blowing in the blistering winds and hearing the groans of a people who can’t escape a land that’s barren and wasted. The characters are unique and so well defined that you think you’ll recognize them if you saw them on the street. Mysteries crop up and demand resolution. As for the love story, it’s one that burns and festers, pleads and despairs until your heart can’t help but open to its message, that love does indeed find a way to conquer all, even in the worst of times and circumstance.
If you’re looking for a historical novel comparable to “The Grapes of Wrath”, this is it. “Back Side of a Blue Moon” transports you to the 1930’s before you can utter the word, dustbowl. You’ll be a witness to the depression that took hold of East Texas and feel it stark realities. You’re thrown into a people’s exhaustion and their determined resolve to hold on to what little they have.
If you want a unique, but fulfilling love story, Doc Banister and Eudora Durant will draw you into a world where the chances of finding romance are about as likely as striking it big in a desolate, barren wasteland. Yet there it is, blossoming in the sweat and turmoil, and pulling the reader into its tender depths and the desires of the heart.
But there’s more. There are mysteries woven into the story. You’re kept wondering and fretting about the disappearance of Eudora’s cruel husband. Is he dead? Did Eudora become so desperate that she resorted to killing him? Will she be arrested for a murder that no one can prove? And what about the oil and finding the precious stuff? It’s another riveting element of the tale that will keep you on the edge. As the hole that Doc Banister is drilling gets deeper and machinery keeps failing, as the money runs out and tempers flare, you hope against hope that the venture will pay off.
Caleb Pirtle’s beautifully written novel brings to life all the key elements you want to experience in a great story. The setting? You’re right there, in the midst of the depression, tasting the dirt that’s blowing in the blistering winds and hearing the groans of a people who can’t escape a land that’s barren and wasted. The characters are unique and so well defined that you think you’ll recognize them if you saw them on the street. Mysteries crop up and demand resolution. As for the love story, it’s one that burns and festers, pleads and despairs until your heart can’t help but open to its message, that love does indeed find a way to conquer all, even in the worst of times and circumstance.
September 20, 2020
In the East Texas town of Ashland, the Great Depression means times are hard. With money and jobs scarce, anyone with any sense is leaving town. For red-head Eudora Durant, something needs to change and when her violent and whoring husband disappears, townsfolk soon begin making assumptions. But then a stranger comes to town with a tin-box machine he claims can find oil, Eudora sees him weaving a spell that throws up all sorts of possibilities for the small community. Though all her senses proclaim him to be nothing more than a flim-flam con man, there’s something about the stranger in the straw boater that keeps her sitting on the fence. When he persuades her to let him dig an oil well on her land, she gets caught up in a tangle of lies and half-truths.
Back Side of a Blue Moon is the first in the Boom Town Saga series, and the first I’ve read by Caleb Pirtle. My overall impression puts the book in what I’d call the ‘slow burner’ category. By that, I mean it starts off at a gentle pace, introducing a cast of disparate characters and sketching out their relationships, before gradually building a story around them, a story that kept me glued to every page. The author’s writing style is captivating – he has a way with words that is by turns witty, charming and totally original and while I could never quite work out how things would end, I was happy to see that most of the characters get their just desserts.
Caleb Pirtle’s gift is in the creation of characters who step right off the page, grabbing the reader and clinging on until the bitter end. A thoroughly enjoyable book that left me with a rather nice warm feeling inside.
Back Side of a Blue Moon is the first in the Boom Town Saga series, and the first I’ve read by Caleb Pirtle. My overall impression puts the book in what I’d call the ‘slow burner’ category. By that, I mean it starts off at a gentle pace, introducing a cast of disparate characters and sketching out their relationships, before gradually building a story around them, a story that kept me glued to every page. The author’s writing style is captivating – he has a way with words that is by turns witty, charming and totally original and while I could never quite work out how things would end, I was happy to see that most of the characters get their just desserts.
Caleb Pirtle’s gift is in the creation of characters who step right off the page, grabbing the reader and clinging on until the bitter end. A thoroughly enjoyable book that left me with a rather nice warm feeling inside.
August 5, 2018
Back Side of a Blue Moon is writing at its finest. Caleb Pirtle makes you sweat in the scorching sun and choke on the dust that fills your nostrils and clogs your throat.
Ashland Texas is dying as one family after another abandon their homes and move away in hopes of finding something, anything better than the life they are leaving behind in Ashland.
Eudora Durant is dying too—not from disease, but from the slow drip, drip of a miserable marriage to a cheating, no-good, alcoholic, S.O.B. named Washburn Durant. Her days are filled with back-breaking physical labor and her nights are full of Washburn’s drunken abuse. She stays away from others in Ashland and hides the frequent bruises that mar her once beautiful face. One night, Washburn hits her one time too many, and he finds himself facing the business end of his own shotgun. He runs, but Eudora and the shotgun are faster.
Under cover of night, fast-talking, good-looking, Doc Bannister and his partner in crime, Waskom Brown sneak into Ashland. The two con men have conjured up plans to sell the locals on Doc’s doodlebug, a contraption with wires and dials that they bamboozle folks into believing can find oil on their farms.
Doc finds himself drawn to the lovely widow and sells Eudora on the idea of oil bubbling beneath the surface of her dried up fields. Others are caught up in Doc’s dream and donate what little they have to build a derrick and drill for oil.
The heat is relentless, and so is the fire burning between Doc and Eudora. She knows he’s a con man, but her heart can’t stop thinking about the dandy with the doodlebug and his silver tongue.
Back Side of a Blue Moon is a story of hope, redemption, and miracles. I’ve read several books by Caleb Pirtle III. This is his best yet.
Ashland Texas is dying as one family after another abandon their homes and move away in hopes of finding something, anything better than the life they are leaving behind in Ashland.
Eudora Durant is dying too—not from disease, but from the slow drip, drip of a miserable marriage to a cheating, no-good, alcoholic, S.O.B. named Washburn Durant. Her days are filled with back-breaking physical labor and her nights are full of Washburn’s drunken abuse. She stays away from others in Ashland and hides the frequent bruises that mar her once beautiful face. One night, Washburn hits her one time too many, and he finds himself facing the business end of his own shotgun. He runs, but Eudora and the shotgun are faster.
Under cover of night, fast-talking, good-looking, Doc Bannister and his partner in crime, Waskom Brown sneak into Ashland. The two con men have conjured up plans to sell the locals on Doc’s doodlebug, a contraption with wires and dials that they bamboozle folks into believing can find oil on their farms.
Doc finds himself drawn to the lovely widow and sells Eudora on the idea of oil bubbling beneath the surface of her dried up fields. Others are caught up in Doc’s dream and donate what little they have to build a derrick and drill for oil.
The heat is relentless, and so is the fire burning between Doc and Eudora. She knows he’s a con man, but her heart can’t stop thinking about the dandy with the doodlebug and his silver tongue.
Back Side of a Blue Moon is a story of hope, redemption, and miracles. I’ve read several books by Caleb Pirtle III. This is his best yet.
September 12, 2020
I really struggled with how to write the review for this book. First and foremost, let me say the story is compelling! The author did a great job of depicting the extremely hard times many folks faced during the American Great Depression. Not only were there no jobs, but there was also no rain. Crops dried up and the ground hardened. All hope shriveled with the dying plants. Eudora started out in life on top of the world. A beautiful young woman, she was engaged to the most wealthy bachelor in Ashland. But when he went away to college, promising to come back and marry her, she began a downward spiral. Not only did he never return to claim her hand, but married a socialite in the big city. Eudora married Washburn Durant, who appeared to be a respectable man. She soon found out he was nothing more than a lazy, abusive philanderer. When she'd had enough, a double-barreled shotgun removed him from her life - or so she thought. The plot thickens when Doc Bannister comes to town with his Doodlebug machine promising riches in oil. I will not give away the story by telling what happens. I'll just say the plot is complex and filled with surprises. The only reason I cannot give this story a five-star review is due to the numerous typos throughout the book as well as missing words. With a thorough edit, this is easily a five-star read!
May 7, 2017
This romance is a different type of book for Caleb Pirtle III to write, but it proves he can write anything his heart desires and do it with style. You can almost feel the heat and oppression of the small town of Ashland, TX, breathe the dust of drought and feel the heartbreak of the less than affluent citizens who populate it. When a handsome con man rolls in, beautiful Eudora cannot resist being drawn to someone she thinks might turn out to be the man she's always yearned for, as opposed to the hateful, tortuous drunk she married. When her husband disappears, the town shuns her with suspicion of murder and she struggles to exist alone with a tiny caged bird as her only companion. But things change as time goes on and unexpected events come into play...some good, some bad. You'll be fascinated with this book and unable to put it down. I read it far into the nights and couldn't wait for time during the day to get back to it.
June 4, 2017
A fascinating story with intriguing characters that will stick with you long after you finish the book, especially beautiful, proud, and stubborn Eudora Durant, and Doc Banister—a smooth-talking, hard to resist, con man.
When Doc appears in Ashland—a small town in Texas where families are broke and hungry—and starts talking about drilling for oil, he sets into motion a series of events with unpredictable consequences for everyone.
I found myself rooting for the people of Ashland who were all pitching in everything they had, and I was holding my breath to find out what will happen… Were they going to drill? And if so, will they hit an oil well or a dry hole? The future of the entire town and every living soul in it depended on it.
This book stirred up strong emotions; I got angry, I laughed, and I cried. What a ride and what an ending!
When Doc appears in Ashland—a small town in Texas where families are broke and hungry—and starts talking about drilling for oil, he sets into motion a series of events with unpredictable consequences for everyone.
I found myself rooting for the people of Ashland who were all pitching in everything they had, and I was holding my breath to find out what will happen… Were they going to drill? And if so, will they hit an oil well or a dry hole? The future of the entire town and every living soul in it depended on it.
This book stirred up strong emotions; I got angry, I laughed, and I cried. What a ride and what an ending!
March 5, 2020
Back Side of a Blue Moon is the first book I've read from author, Caleb Pirtle III. I was drawn to his short bursts of expressive style, leaving plenty of white space on a page. Eudora Durant and shyster, Doc Bannister were authentically written, (I could imagine myself there during the Great Depression.) Historical accounts all say that times were skimpy and difficult at best. The author's words tell that story. Mr. Pirtle's writing will have you empathize with each character-- how poor the people along the Sabine River were in the decades following WWI. His simple descriptions and genuine language of the day will tug at your heart. A thoroughly enjoyable read!
April 3, 2020
I have now read several novels by Caleb Pirtle III, and the man knows how to engage his audience and keep them engaged!
How's this for an opening line?
"Eudora Durant knew there must be a hundred or more good ways of dying, some better than others, some worse, and she wondered why she had insisted on taking the slowest path possible to the grave."
'Blue Moon' is an artfully constructed story of America during the Great Depression, a tale of hope, cynicism, hardship, trickery and possible redemption; and populated with unforgettable, three-dimensional characters.
Written in the author's hallmark crisp, deceptively simple style, this novel is highly recommended. A fast, page-turner of a read.
How's this for an opening line?
"Eudora Durant knew there must be a hundred or more good ways of dying, some better than others, some worse, and she wondered why she had insisted on taking the slowest path possible to the grave."
'Blue Moon' is an artfully constructed story of America during the Great Depression, a tale of hope, cynicism, hardship, trickery and possible redemption; and populated with unforgettable, three-dimensional characters.
Written in the author's hallmark crisp, deceptively simple style, this novel is highly recommended. A fast, page-turner of a read.
August 26, 2023
Once I started reading this book I couldn’t stop. It was great. It captures the desperation of a small Texas town in the Depression and the drought of the 1930’s. His writing is fantastic and his characters were people you’ve seen in pictures from the 1930’s. They desperately wanted to believe in Doc. They had lost hope and would have left town but there was nowhere for them to go. I wanted to send a note to the author telling him how much I liked this book but he died about two weeks ago. Rest in Peace, Caleb.
March 26, 2019
Do you believe a con man or do you believe he's changed.
First place you start this story; is do you believe Eudora or some of the crazy people in the town she lives in. Next the flim flam man doesn't run out when the running would of been the best.
Lastly, just read and enjoy a GREAT book!
First place you start this story; is do you believe Eudora or some of the crazy people in the town she lives in. Next the flim flam man doesn't run out when the running would of been the best.
Lastly, just read and enjoy a GREAT book!
August 25, 2024
I love a book that teaches me about something I knew little about and makes me want to learn more. This did that. I love strong characters who seem like they can walk off the page and be real people. This did that. I LOVE Southern writers and their colloquialisms and how they describe things! This author has that better than others I’ve read!
So, this was a good one for me, yet I’m not aching to hurry and start the second book.
So, this was a good one for me, yet I’m not aching to hurry and start the second book.
December 19, 2018
Twisted bits
Quite a story. Many of Caleb 's Characters are close to some I've heard about growing up in the East Texas oilfields. Very enjoyable and moved fast.
Quite a story. Many of Caleb 's Characters are close to some I've heard about growing up in the East Texas oilfields. Very enjoyable and moved fast.
July 27, 2023
I struggled through this book and didn't really enjoy it. I still want to read other books by this author. This one just wasn't 'my cup of tea'.
August 6, 2021
Back Side of a Blue Moon is the first novel of Caleb Pirtle’s Book Town Saga and the first of Pirtle’s many novels I’ve read. It won’t be my last. This was a terrific read, which for me was reminiscent of Faulkner, Steinbeck, even Caldwell, but not only because it deals with the lower echelons of society who suffer extreme poverty or because it takes place in the Dust Bowl during the Great Depression. Pirtle flashes plenty of brilliance in this novel. Not only does he display exceptional writing skill and exquisite storytelling talent, but he grabs readers by the collar, pulls them in on the first page, and holds them tightly all the way to the end.
Pirtle’s characters feel real, despite (or because of) their quirks, attitudes, and ability to carry on against all odds. We are thrown into the midst of a dried up, hopeless, all-but-dead small town in West Texas, the appropriately named, Ashland. The town and the novel are populated by a wide range of characters, some good some pure evil. Our experience among them includes sights, sounds, even smells that envelope the reader. I was there with them the whole time. Pirtle doesn’t sugar coat it. What he shows us is the real, underbelly of a hard life during hard times. And he makes it compelling. Not easy to do, but he has the craftsmanship and sensitivity to pull it off.
Although it isn’t evident right away, at its core Back Side of a Blue Moon is a love story. Eudora Durant, a beautiful, feisty young woman is the victim of an abusive husband. You’ll hate him. Doc Bannister (if that’s really his name) is a huckster, a flim-flam man, who arrives in Ashland with a scheme to suck what money the people have from them and to split town before he can be exposed. An unlikely pair of lovers to be sure, but we can’t help rooting for them all the way. Will they make it? Will Doc’s scam actually pay off? Will the people of Ashland, especially Eudora, be left in the dust, literally?
Back Side of the Moon is a great read. My adventure getting my hands dirty and my emotions sapped on the outskirts of a dying West Texas town is still vivid to me. I’m not going to reveal the surprise ending. You’ll have to find out for yourself.
Pirtle’s characters feel real, despite (or because of) their quirks, attitudes, and ability to carry on against all odds. We are thrown into the midst of a dried up, hopeless, all-but-dead small town in West Texas, the appropriately named, Ashland. The town and the novel are populated by a wide range of characters, some good some pure evil. Our experience among them includes sights, sounds, even smells that envelope the reader. I was there with them the whole time. Pirtle doesn’t sugar coat it. What he shows us is the real, underbelly of a hard life during hard times. And he makes it compelling. Not easy to do, but he has the craftsmanship and sensitivity to pull it off.
Although it isn’t evident right away, at its core Back Side of a Blue Moon is a love story. Eudora Durant, a beautiful, feisty young woman is the victim of an abusive husband. You’ll hate him. Doc Bannister (if that’s really his name) is a huckster, a flim-flam man, who arrives in Ashland with a scheme to suck what money the people have from them and to split town before he can be exposed. An unlikely pair of lovers to be sure, but we can’t help rooting for them all the way. Will they make it? Will Doc’s scam actually pay off? Will the people of Ashland, especially Eudora, be left in the dust, literally?
Back Side of the Moon is a great read. My adventure getting my hands dirty and my emotions sapped on the outskirts of a dying West Texas town is still vivid to me. I’m not going to reveal the surprise ending. You’ll have to find out for yourself.
July 9, 2023
Carman Amato recommended this read to me, and I have to tell you that I owe her a big one. The Back Side of a Blue Moon is by far the best novel I have read lately. I had to let it stew a bit and then read it again, it is that good. The second reading was mostly aloud to my family, and we had such a good time. Bring this one home, folks, and set aside a day or two to enjoy this tale, told so very well. It is the first of a series, The Boom Town Saga, so we are in for an extended treat.
Reviewed on April 4, 2023, at Goodreads, AmazonSmile, BookBub, and Kobo.
Reviewed on April 4, 2023, at Goodreads, AmazonSmile, BookBub, and Kobo.
July 3, 2017
A Must Read
Caleb Pirtle has written a story that will capture and hold you from the beginning to the end. Dialogue that is crisp, catching, and glitters with intensity. A story line that keeps you rooting for the win all the way to the end. Characters that are alive and walk off the page and into your imagination. A locale that takes on its own life and engulfs you. You can not miss this story and you can't lay it down.
Caleb Pirtle has written a story that will capture and hold you from the beginning to the end. Dialogue that is crisp, catching, and glitters with intensity. A story line that keeps you rooting for the win all the way to the end. Characters that are alive and walk off the page and into your imagination. A locale that takes on its own life and engulfs you. You can not miss this story and you can't lay it down.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews