The Tide King

Fiction & Literature, Literary
Cover of the book The Tide King by Jen Michalski, Dzanc Books
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Jen Michalski ISBN: 9781941531624
Publisher: Dzanc Books Publication: July 13, 2013
Imprint: Dzanc Books Language: English
Author: Jen Michalski
ISBN: 9781941531624
Publisher: Dzanc Books
Publication: July 13, 2013
Imprint: Dzanc Books
Language: English
Stanley Polensky and Calvin Johnson serve in Germany during World War II. Calvin, near death after being shelled, is given a bewitched herb by Stanley but then left for dead. Each soldier returns from the war and years pass. Calvin, discovering that he cannot age and cannot die, searches for Stanley to get answers. Michalski's The Tide King is the story of burnette saxifrage, an herb rumored in Polish folklore to provide those who eat it with immortality, and its effects on three generations of a Polish family over two continents beginning in 19th-century Poland and ending in 1976 America. But it is also the story of young men's sacrifice during great wars, of a young child's experiences during the holocaust and being a war orphan, of the curiosities of the American century, such as 1950s country music and smoke jumpers in the Montana mountains and 1970s New York. Just as Viking king Cnut, who was rumored to be so powerful that he controlled the tides at his feet, discovered "how empty and worthless is the power of kings," Calvin Johnson and others cursed by the herb find in The Tide King that the power of youth and immortality is an empty gift, for they will continually witness the death of their families, lovers, dreams, and ideals.
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Stanley Polensky and Calvin Johnson serve in Germany during World War II. Calvin, near death after being shelled, is given a bewitched herb by Stanley but then left for dead. Each soldier returns from the war and years pass. Calvin, discovering that he cannot age and cannot die, searches for Stanley to get answers. Michalski's The Tide King is the story of burnette saxifrage, an herb rumored in Polish folklore to provide those who eat it with immortality, and its effects on three generations of a Polish family over two continents beginning in 19th-century Poland and ending in 1976 America. But it is also the story of young men's sacrifice during great wars, of a young child's experiences during the holocaust and being a war orphan, of the curiosities of the American century, such as 1950s country music and smoke jumpers in the Montana mountains and 1970s New York. Just as Viking king Cnut, who was rumored to be so powerful that he controlled the tides at his feet, discovered "how empty and worthless is the power of kings," Calvin Johnson and others cursed by the herb find in The Tide King that the power of youth and immortality is an empty gift, for they will continually witness the death of their families, lovers, dreams, and ideals.

More books from Dzanc Books

Cover of the book All Over by Jen Michalski
Cover of the book The Clay That Breathes by Jen Michalski
Cover of the book 30 Pieces of a Novel by Jen Michalski
Cover of the book Plus by Jen Michalski
Cover of the book Priors by Jen Michalski
Cover of the book Black Maps by Jen Michalski
Cover of the book The Fair Sister by Jen Michalski
Cover of the book Walk Me to the Distance by Jen Michalski
Cover of the book Between Wrecks by Jen Michalski
Cover of the book Ryan Seacrest is Famous by Jen Michalski
Cover of the book Separate Hours by Jen Michalski
Cover of the book The Committee on Town Happiness by Jen Michalski
Cover of the book Medicine Burns by Jen Michalski
Cover of the book Not for Nothing by Jen Michalski
Cover of the book The Downtown Jews: Portraits of an Immigrant Generation by Jen Michalski
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy