It isn't often that I read a book that has been self-published and get to intrigued that I find myself sitting up late at night to finish it, because the characters and story have captured my imagination, but North Georgia author Mike Ragland's book A Time to Gather Stones accomplished that feat.
My mother ordered the book for me for Christmas last year, based on the recommendations of several folks in the Facebook group I Grew Up in Acworth/Kennesaw Before Town Center Mall. It's a good group, particularly of interest to us, because my Hasty and Butler forbears were from the Cobb County and Cherokee County part of North Georgia.
A Time to Gather Stones was the book I grabbed and stuffed in my tote bag last Wednesday, to have something to read while waiting on my mother to get her cataract surgery completed. I didn't have high expectations because, frankly, the cover art is unimpressive. (The old saying "you can't judge a book by its cover" would apply here, obviously...) The book languished on my To Be Read pile for months because of my misjudgment, and I feel a bit guilty about that, honestly.
The story is anything but simple. It's pretty complex, but that's okay. I like complex. The main character is Jack Barker, a young history professor who is grieving because his wife has died. He goes to see his mother in Texas and learns that his grandfather has left him several items, including one that has the power to transport him back in time, to 1715. The spirit of his grandfather appears to him and tells him he must go back to that time and rescue a maiden who is trapped in a cave and cannot escape. Jack goes back in time.
His adventures are fascinating, for a number of reasons. One, I love time travel stories, in books or on film. The notion just intrigues me. Two, author Mike Ragland has obviously done a lot of research into the Native American tribes in North Georgia, East Tennessee, and South Carolina during the 18th century. Fascinating subject, and he handles it well. He also writes about Jewish communities in those areas during the 17th and 18th centuries -- a fascinating topic and one I knew nothing about. Three, Ragland writes fight scenes very well. Four, his female characters are complex and unique. Five, I know some of the places he talks about, and from my childhood I know the Blue Ridge mountains are beautiful and mysterious.
Finally, I am always fascinated by the genesis of great stories.
From the Foreword to the book, this fascinating note from the author:
"There is a stone at the Track Rock Gap National Park near Blairsville, Georgia. It is a small area with six stones covered in petroglyphs. Many theories exist as to where they came from... There is a name on stone four that is almost unreadable... The name is Liube. It is a Hebrew name meaning Beloved. It was usually reserved for daughters of rabbis. Next to the name is the date 1715."
Ragland saw the name and wondered about it, and it sparked his imagination. The book A Time to Gather Stones is the result.
It isn't a perfect book. He skimps on describing places, a good bit, and sometimes the action gallops by at a dizzying pace. There are a number of typos, and grammar and usage errors. (Next time, Ragland needs to get his manuscript copy-edited more carefully. However, those are probably not annoying to anyone except English geeks like myself.)
I told my brother on the phone the other day that I want him to read this book. He is fascinated by history and likes sci-fi and time travel books. He is also a retired Army major and likes books with good fight scenes and interesting weaponry, and this book has those.
Mike Ragland is a retired officer with the Rome (Georgia) police department. For someone who is not a trained/educated writer, he has accomplished something really admirable -- written a fascinating, informative, and captivating story that I can wholeheartedly recommend. You can order it here on Amazon.
Right: photo made in the North Georgia mountains
by my friend Lisa Amos. (It is not in the book.)
