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.

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.

I bought the first volume and thought it would be interesting as we just purchased a home in West Point recently. I didn’t purchase the second and third vol as I was apprehensive as to the talents of the biographer. We’ll let me tell you, this is a fantastic chronicle of an amazing and different kind of family unit. The talent of the biographer was fantastic in presenting the story thru letters interviews and narrative writings. I just purchased vol2&3 and highly recommend this 3 vol story .

Enjoyed all three volumes. Great history, great flow great characters.

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 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!

A very impressive review of the lives and achievements of highly gifted individuals who often happened to thrive in a beautiful, if somewhat secluded stretch of the Sierra Nevada:Mother Lode of music and gastronomy