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Polk Gulch
"Reading, at points, like an alcohol-fueled dream, POLK GULCH by Andrew Bardin Williams is a colorful, meandering look at what it means to make a beautiful life with someone, only to have that song end." -- IndieReader
From the author of IR Discovery Award finalist Learning to Haight comes a story about unimaginable grief. Wally, a neurotic, self-depreciating sales rep in San Francisco, somehow wins the heart of Julie, the drummer for a rising punk band. She’s everything he isn’t—cool, brash, confident in her own skin—and Wally never feels he’s able to live up to her public persona. Complicating matters is the fact that Wally is convinced he will die young and has taken weirdly precise considerations to make sure his affairs are taken care of after he is gone—even going as far as to pick out a potential mate for Julie to step in after his death.When tragedy tears them apart, Wally spirals into a tailspin involving booze, strippers, old wedding videos, a Jack Russell named after Joey Ramone and a dramatic rescue on the Golden Gate Bridge. Eventually, it’s his circle of friends that act as his de facto family as he deals with a devastating loss. Above all, Polk Gulch is a startlingly honest story about love and grief that allows readers to enter the brain of someone who is haunted by the impending specter of death.
From the author of IR Discovery Award finalist Learning to Haight comes a story about unimaginable grief. Wally, a neurotic, self-depreciating sales rep in San Francisco, somehow wins the heart of Julie, the drummer for a rising punk band. She’s everything he isn’t—cool, brash, confident in her own skin—and Wally never feels he’s able to live up to her public persona. Complicating matters is the fact that Wally is convinced he will die young and has taken weirdly precise considerations to make sure his affairs are taken care of after he is gone—even going as far as to pick out a potential mate for Julie to step in after his death.When tragedy tears them apart, Wally spirals into a tailspin involving booze, strippers, old wedding videos, a Jack Russell named after Joey Ramone and a dramatic rescue on the Golden Gate Bridge. Eventually, it’s his circle of friends that act as his de facto family as he deals with a devastating loss. Above all, Polk Gulch is a startlingly honest story about love and grief that allows readers to enter the brain of someone who is haunted by the impending specter of death.
Kindle Edition
Published May 14, 2020
About the author
Andrew Bardin Williams
3 books2 followersAndrew Bardin Williams is an author and copywriter in New Haven, Connecticut. Inspired by the beats, Andrew strives to provide readers a sense of place in his fiction writing, using real-world locations to create setting, build tension, and develop character.
Andrew recently launched his second novel, Polk Gulch.
His first novel Learning to Haight was launched at the Beat Museum in San Francisco, named a finalist for the 2012 Indie Reader Discovery Award in literary fiction, and featured by www.kerouac.com and Dante's Hot Tub on Radio Valencia.
A new member of the New Haven arts community, Andrew is a participant in the "Get to the Point" storytelling series at Cafe Nine and has given a reading at the Institute Library. He is currently documenting the relationship between geography and New Haven based literature through a grant from the Arts Council.
Andrew recently launched his second novel, Polk Gulch.
His first novel Learning to Haight was launched at the Beat Museum in San Francisco, named a finalist for the 2012 Indie Reader Discovery Award in literary fiction, and featured by www.kerouac.com and Dante's Hot Tub on Radio Valencia.
A new member of the New Haven arts community, Andrew is a participant in the "Get to the Point" storytelling series at Cafe Nine and has given a reading at the Institute Library. He is currently documenting the relationship between geography and New Haven based literature through a grant from the Arts Council.
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