Blue Rooms

Turning to the substance that is the source of all life, Jerome (Stone Work) once again demonstrates the humanity and story-telling skill with which he has turned subjects like delving into truck engines and building stone walls into absorbing lessons in life. To Jerome, water is interchangable with memory, both of which contain qualities of reflective clarity. Announcing that he is approaching his 60th birthday, Jerome sets out to stay overnight at a pond in New Hampshire. He gets reaquainted with the power of water to soothe and inspire, and is grateful to ""be an old guy out paddling around in a pond just because it's such a pretty place to be."" Splicing together new writings with versions of articles that appeared in Outside, the Boston Globe Magazine and elsewhere, he paints a glistening portrait of his life in water. Starting by revisiting Mountain Fork, the little Oklahoma river that introduced him to a love of water, Jerome tries to recapture his childhood ability to ""explore every nuance of a stream."" He describes many rivers, creeks, and swimming spots. He explains the physics of swimming, paddling and canoeing, layering in stories about his alcoholic father, his spirited mother and his own life. In this beatifully crafted work, Jerome proves that water carries memory and insight as surely as it carries sound. Rights (except electronic): George Borchardt. (June)