AUTHOR THOMAS PREISS
The Hassayampa King - Its just about done!
Cover of the Hassayampa King
Thomas with carnation in his mouth
In a photo entitled “Speak No Evil,” taken 28 years ago at a younger brother’s wedding, I emulate the fashion of the day complete with a white carnation placed in my mouth in an effort to have me forever hold my peace.  I loved the shirt.  I had four of them, souvenirs from a restaurant I worked at.  The picture was taken in an old Phoenix neighborhood during the monsoon season

 

It is difficult to categorize this novel.  There is romance, crime, punishment, spiritual awakening, despair, and childlike joy with large doses of easy story telling found between the chaos of Mitchell's young life and the mythic peace that grace ultimately delivers.  The Hassayampa King walks the gamut of human emotion from the dark grip of night to boyhood light to the tingling love between a husband and his wife. The story begins and ends on the Hassayampa River south of Prescott, Arizona, and takes Mitchell down the highways and interstates of Arizona, Nevada, and Southern California.

The Hassayampa King is haunting.  It is rich in symbolism.  While writing, I found myself very much a part of Mitchell’s life, feeling every step he took, not just inwardly but outwardly too.  I believe the reader will as well.  I laughed when Mitchell laughed, and cried when he cried.  I felt the blue sky above him and the dark of night within.  Subjectively, objectively, his life will become a part of yours as you open and close this book with him, in his epic journey toward truth.

Take the journey with Mitchell, which will ultimately become your own as you recognize the markers of your life having crossed the paths left by Mitchell's own footprints.