Scars and Stars
Dustin Stevens Standalone Novel
A boy of just six years old, Austin Roberts found himself perpetually in the way at the post-funeral gathering of his great uncle Jack. Frustrated and alone, he wandered out onto the front porch to find his great uncle Cat, Jack's brother, sitting alone, an old album on his lap. Oblivious to the world around them, the two begin an unlikely conversation and together embark on journey that stretches almost seven decades in length.
Page by page, Cat imparts the story of the album to young Austin, using a series of seemingly mundane and unconnected objects to tell the story of the brothers Roberts from long ago. Beginning with their humble upbringing by a single mother on the river bottoms of rural Ohio to the day they left home to serve in the Korean, through their capture and escape from an unmarked prisoner of war camp and on through the lives they returned to, the album tells a story of bravery and brotherhood that knows no bounds.
Let me say I had no preconceived notion when I chose to read this book. I read a lot and often. Strangely, I too am from Ohio and am a veteran so I could relate even more to this story and the way it was written. I too, reflect daily on my life and the events that have made me what I am. I find few writers that have the depth of feeling to write a page turner such as this book. I have read many of Dustin Stevens' novels but he hit this one out of the park. I thank him.
