Ronald J Brickman
In The Shadow Of Blue Mountain:
Lives And Letters Of A Remarkable Family (Trilogy)
Ronald J Brickman
4.40[11.500 Rating]
Ronald J Brickman, a renowned author, pianist, and concert manager, grew up in the picturesque town of West Point in central California. With an impressive educational background from Stanford University and MIT, he dedicated much of his adult life to working abroad in various international affairs institutes and universities. He has also worked with prestigious organizations such as the European Community and the Food and Agriculture Organization. With his vast experience and expertise, he has now ventured into writing his first non-academic book series, In The Shadow Of Blue Mountain: Lives And Letters Of A Remarkable Family,Vol. I, II, III.
In The Shadow Of Blue Mountain:
Lives And Letters Of A Remarkable Family
Ronald J Brickman
In The Shadow Of Blue Mountain:
Lives And Letters Of A Remarkable Family
In The Shadow Of Blue Mountain: Lives And Letters Of A Remarkable Family - Volume I, 1868-1946
In The Shadow Of Blue Mountain: Lives And Letters Of A Remarkable Family – Volume I, 1868-1946 tells the stories of Charles Anton, Elma Kathleen (Bim), and Roger Howerth Hollingshead, along with the author Ronnie, who became closely connected with them. These individuals all had a strong connection to the idyllic town of West Point, California, where they lived on an orchard property. Their experiences and the town’s changes are equally important in this narrative.
In The Shadow Of Blue Mountain: Lives And Letters Of A Remarkable Family - Volume II, 1946-1962
In Volume II of the book, we read letters exchanged between different characters. Bim’s college friend Mildred Biddick and Sam Welles, his colleague in the State Department, are some correspondents. Some notable events include Bim’s break-up with Slim, her marriage to “Doc” Brockman, and the marriage of Esther and Verne. The volume also explores the arrival of an Albanian statesman and his family, ending with the death of Bim’s mother and Ronnie attending Stanford University.
In The Shadow Of Blue Mountain: Lives And Letters Of A Remarkable Family Volume III, 1962-2022
Volume III will conclude the series as Ronnie completes his education at Stanford and MIT. His multiple residences, career positions, and travels abroad and in the US, with the development of his musical activities a constant sideline, are then described, along with the final years of Bim and Roger. Ronnie’s correspondence with Bim becomes the primary source of record. Following Bim’s death in 1983, Ronnie continues along the path that Bim set before him, returning to and living on the Hollingshead farm as his teacher had done and becoming himself a piano teacher, concert pianist, and concert manager, and grower of heirloom apples.
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Reviews by Reader
I have read all three volumes and am delighted with these books. Having known in person almost all of the main characters, I can attest to how gracefully and skillfully Ronald Brickman has woven together these pages to portray their unique personalities. Through excerpts of their own letters these unusual family members come to life. I am immensely grateful to discover new and fascinating background and history of these people to enhance my understanding of my own past. I and my family were honored to befriend them through unusual circumstances. We appear in Chapter 14 of Volume 2 and subsequently. It’s a fascinating part of California small-town (West Point) history.
Prepare to be fascinated from the very beginning.
An engaging and intimate look into the lives of a remarkable family through a century and a half, exploring education, diplomacy, and music against the enchanting backdrop of the Sierra Nevada mountains. A truly unforgettable read.
Not just a vanity print book
Country living history
Great read!
rThe blessings of music, culture and sophisticated gastronomy : a revival of Mother Lode
This is a real-life story told through the letters written or recorded by the main characters in this book, spanning three generations. It is a story of intense love and heartbreaking abandonment, as well as a story of surprising careers in foreign lands, ending on a musical estate and apple orchard in the shadow of Blue Mountain in the Sierra foothills in northern California.
The originality of this beautifully written narrative swiftly carries you along from the pioneer days in Virginia to the world of academia and gentleman farming at the beginning of the 21st Century. Highly readable and entertaining!