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.
