Lakeshore Advance, 2012-06-27, Page 11..n Lakeshore Advance • Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Jack Beer is back at it in The Garnished Truth
Lynda HNImen-Rapley
Lakeshore Advance
The Garnished 'IYuth conies out next
week and is author Rick Hundey's third
book, this time short stories, that will
delight readers from beginning to end.
The first two books centre on character
lack Beer, a no-nonsense ex detective. In
the Garnished Mali, Jack appears in a few
stories.
Hundey says he has been keeping lack
busy in a few short stories and also in a
new novel he hopes to see published later
this year.
For now, Jack is found in Me Garnished
Truth, a collection of suspense stories and
mysteries, with a dash or two of humour
thrown in. Jack is the central character in
about half a dozen of the shorts and he
plays a supporting role in a couple of
others.
"I've grown attached to some of the
characters in the lack Beer books, Death at
the Bend and Collingwcxxi Fakeout and so
decided to write about them. 'Ihey seemed
to fit nicely into the short story genre," says
1 lundey.
lack's biker sidekick, Tiny Cole, takes
centre stage in one story and strong sec-
ondary roles in two others. I'm particularly
fond of Mtadciie Moyer, the smart -mouthed
waitress who first appears in Collingwood
Fakeout. She reminds Hundey of those
cool and funny servers or checkout clerks
you bump into, always ready with a wise-
crack. So, she is the star of two of the
short&
l lundey says, "Sonne of the non -Elvis
tribute artists stepped out of Collingwoo d
Fakeout into a short story"
lack's lawyer friend from Death at the
Bend is in another.
Then there are six or seven suspense
stories that have very little to do with lack.
'These ditties (xeepexi out some of the early
They're so adorable when they're having fun.
(So are the kids.)
At Timbits Soccer, everyone gets Into the game.
Kids make new friends, and parents have fun
cheering them on. Your local Tim Hortons is
proud to support over 200 boys and girls who
play Timbits Soccer in Grand Bend and Parkhill.
O Tim Horton, 101 I
oCCt:a
The Si god M having M•
74fhbttam.
Author Rick Hundey
readers. "While these stories have nothing to do with
Jack Beer directly, one of their nastier bad guys has a
prominent part in my next book"
What inspires Hundey?
"'There are eighteen stories so 1 suppose 1 had that
many inspirations. But it is hard to pin down a story's
precise origins. Of course there is always a spark. My
wife, lane, often does or says something surprising or
offthe wall and I'll get to thinking. Men, there are eve-
ryday events to which you apply the question 'what if:
For example, what if a newspaper want ad is not what
it seems? What if it was designed to lure someone in?
That was the starting point for the hook's first sus-
pense story. And over time, there are enough real life
incidents that if tweaked and stretched enough can be
turned into a good yarn. "
1 lundey writes a lot. Ile and his wife June like to
spend time with their children and grandchildren,
and they travel when they can. hen, there's volunteer
work - a fair bit (Atha
Vie readers
"It is really quite gratifying to he told dual your book
was a darned good read. Mere are even people who
come up to rhe to tell me they're expecting my nex'
book 'very soon:
I got good reviews for my first two books in the Lon-
don Free Press. 'that suggests 1 should be going after a
wider audience. My publisher is quite small but we
areoing to look at ways to reach out to the wider
market."
1 lundey says writing is both rewarding and difficult.
"You need sone talent. But a willingness to be self-
critical and to rewrite and rewrite is more important.
I've also learned that everyone has a story to tell:"
When it Comes to advice for others who want to
write, 1 lundey says it is hard to find large commercial
publishers who will take a look at your work. "But
don't let that discourage you. if you love to write there
are viable alternatives including self -publishing and
smaller local publishers. For the technically astute, e
books are worth considering:*
1 le goes on to say that some new writers don't real-
ize they still have along way to go even after finishing a
clean first draft. "I've written two or three major drafts,
involving major plot revision. And that is always fol-
lowed by extensive revisions and then more extensive
revisions, page by page. Listen to author interviews
and they make the same point.
Another thing: latch onto other writers and
exchange your work. Ask for feedback.
Finally, set a time aside to write. And keep at it:'
If you go:
1lundey is launching his new book at the Exeter
library Italy 11 at 6:30 Plat if anyone wants to drop by.
Or if you want contact rhe, our website is www.rick-
hundey.fauxpop.ty
"I've been known to personally deliver signed cop-
ies of my hook"
`Hometown' is a pleaser
CONTINUED FROM > PAGE 21
Next, 'Thea was back onstage, telling us, "l get car-
ried away sometimes—geographically. 1 get geo-
graphically rambunctious" Guloien is the perfect
choice to portray this perky yet resentful teen. The
play that followed, A Way to the Stars by Peter Smith is
more involved and complex than the others, with
scene changes and a storyline that traces the lives of
two teenage boys (Ryan Bondy and Phil Poirier).
'There are ninny outstanding moments in this play, as
the rest of the cast (Marion Day, Kira Guloien, 'Ibny
Munch) appear in the skits in various supporting
roles. 'The changing scenes and the structure left me a
bit confused, and I welcomed the intermission so 1
could sift through my notes and chart the play's
course. Having said this, however, I was still drawn
into the action and the script is well-written, with
engaging characters and superb acting.
After intermission we were treated to the last two
plays, Things to Remember by Mieko Ouchi and'lhe
Bog by Martha Ross. Things to Remember impressed
me with a lever storyline spin from a list of rules that
the father (Tony Munch) reads aloud to his sons
(Bondy and Poirier). All the phrases on the list are
eventually addressed during the unfolding action—
phrases such as The Worth of Character, The Power of
Kindness, The Influence of Exatnple. The Bog is,
without exaggeration, hilarious. It was a wonderful
way to end the evening's literary offerings. Marion
Day portrays a writer who claims that she grew up on
a large bog filled with eccentric, even dangerous,
characters. "It was a haunted dream of a place:' 'lite
mysterious man who spies on her (Tony Munch)
eventually confronts her, insisting that her stories are
fabricated. Men her diameters come to life and take
over the stage, the humour escalates. Along with the
main cast, younger local actors take part in this dos-
ing play, several from the Blyth Festival's Young Com-
pany. The evening concluded with '1'hea's final
appearance and marked the first time when the teen-
ager actually strayed from humour to a brief interlude
of drama. She did, however, return to comeKiy to send
the audience away, smiling.
I cannot finish this review without complimenting
many people. First and foremast, congratulations are
extended to Peter Smith, not only for his vision that
was instrunental in creating 1 Ionnetown, but also
undertaking the formidable task of entwining won.,
from six different writers with six different styles and
making everything flow so seamlessly. Marion Day is
always a polished professional and consistently deliv-
ers a solid performance. Hometown was no excep-
tion. 'Ibny Munch and Ryan Bondy handled multiple
roles convincingly and with apparent ease. Newcom-
ers to Blyth, Kira Guloien and Phil Poirier were vital
additions to the cast with their strong and credible
performances. The piano and guitar music of David
Archibald provided the perfect background for each
play. My final compliment goes out to Eric Coates
who had both the wisdom and the artistic sensibility
to realize the potential of this undertaking.
1
t