On Rims of Empty Moons

by John P. McAfee

Johnny McBride has been running all his lifeSince age six, when he discovered his mother drowned in her wedding dress in the stock tank on their ranch, someone has been trying to kill young Johnny McBride. Everyone in Van Horn, Texas, it seems—from the scion of the feuding clan on the surrounding ranch to his own witless father and brother—wants to do him in.But Johnny has his defenses. Armed with his own brand of dark humor and unique take on the infamous "McBride luck," Johnny has the friendship of the green-eyed, blonde vaquero, Jose Navarette, who once rode with Pancho Villa. Moreover, he has the tenacity born of deprivation and the desert itself.From the West Texas wilderness, cratered and barren as the moon, to the jungles of Viet Nam and the impoverished villages of Mexico, the epic journey of Johnny McBride comes full circle. On his return to his desert home, Johnny discovers a landscape so mired in the seepage of corporate lust and betrayal that not even he can outrun it.

267 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 1997

About the author

Born in Clovis, New Mexico in 1947, John grew up with his brother on large ranches in West Texas: Ft. Davis, Alpine, and Van Horn. He led a Huck Finn life and was probably the only kid who had an antelope named Governor for a pet. It slept with him every night until it got too large and aggressive and sent to Yellowstone National Park for breeding stock. His father was a ranch foreman and spent much of his life working ranches for absentee owners. His mother was a professional politician in Santa Fe, New Mexico where he spent many summers fishing the Pecos River and attending the Santa Fe Opera. He was educated through high school and junior college at New Mexico Military Institute, and was commissioned as second lieutenant in the Infantry. He served with the 8th Special Forces Group in South America (Ft. Gulick, CZ) and 5th Special Forces Group in Vietnam. He has a BA in English from University of Texas-El Paso and an MA in Education Administration from Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, North Carolina. He is married to the whimsical artist, Elizabeth McAfee, and they have a son, John Lewis McAfee, who along with his wife, Amy, work in the U.S.Citizenship and Immigration Services for Homeland Security. After a long career in teaching, coaching, and administration, He is now a full-time writer.

Reviews

[Denise Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know the arthur personally. He is a great man. Taugh my daughter and was my boss for a few years. That was why I bought the book. Then I read it, and loved it. This is not my usual genre so I was suprized. I laughed and cried throughout the book. Try it you may just be suprized too.