PAUL

Following his involvement in a fatal sports accident, a young man takes to riding the rails in this debut novella.

Paul Thompson is a record-breaking university baseball player whose life changes when a batter falls down dead after being struck by one of his pitches in 1929. Fearing the result of the inquiry, Paul jumps on a moving train to begin a new life as a “wayfarer.” Five years later, he is found close to death in his hometown of Centralia after being beaten by a notorious railroad security guard named Cassidy Bills. Paul dies briefly before miraculously jolting back to life. He is cared for by the enigmatic Doc Browne, a man who is also tormented by demons after serving in World War I. Paul’s brush with death lends him a profound spiritual insight into life, and the two men help each other come to terms with their troubling pasts. Meanwhile, Paul discovers surprising news about the batter who dropped dead and sets about carving out a new life for himself as the Depression takes root. Still, the ghosts of his former life persist in returning to haunt him. This charming fictional story, inspired by Blair’s uncle who “rode the rails” in the 1930s, is an eloquent tribute to the resilience of the American hobo. The author uses crisp, straightforward prose adorned with a scattering of richly original similes to describe the plight of his blue-collar hero: “Not all of a sudden, but in short, pulsating intervals of dim light, like through a piece of glass smeared with Vaseline, Paul began to focus on his immediate surroundings.” The novella also has a similarly subtle yet engaging philosophical undertow that explores what drives individuals to become outsiders: “Maybe they don’t fit in because they refuse to, whatever their reasons are. They refuse to carry other men’s burdens. They can’t do what most men do, carry the burden of family.” The story does suffer from a few typos and the occasional unnecessary tense change: “The two exited Doc’s place...and walked to the front door as Doc and the sheriff begin to drive away.” This does little to detract from beguilingly honest storytelling with sufficient plot twists to keep readers guessing to the very end.

An enthralling celebration of an American cultural archetype.