cover image Striking It Rich

Striking It Rich

Craig Vetter. William Morrow & Company, $18 (212pp) ISBN 978-0-688-10609-6

The unnamed narrator of magazine writer Vetter's debut novel is an unlikely and thoroughly likable hero. After years of trying to make a living writing for Playboy and other magazines, the 39-year-old journalist packs his car and heads for the oil-boom town of Westin, Wyo., leaving behind a dissolving marriage and a greenhouse full of marijuana. His arrival in Westin is memorable but unpleasant: the battery is stolen from his car; nearly all the available rooms are taken; work opportunities are not plentiful. Eventually he finds a job and is subjected to backbreaking labor, questionable pay practices, foremen and managers who care more about their rigs than their men and, finally, to Monday, the woman who might change his life. Vetter writes with clarity about believable and engaging characters, creating a light, quick read that leaves a pleasant aftertaste. First serial to Playboy. (Aug.)