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ENLARGE
‘Blackbelly: A novel’
By Heather Sharfeddin
Bridge Works Publishing
Hardbound $21.95
By Heather Sharfeddin
Bridge Works Publishing
Hardbound $21.95
The title of this novel, “Blackbelly,” may seem strange to readers until they realize it comes from the name of a rare bred of sheep Oregon rancher Heather Sharfeddin raises.
Not only does she raise a rare breed of sheep, she may have just achieved a literary first – a new genre of novel. Heather is a talented writer. Her first novel is to be released by Bridge Works Publishing Co. of Bridgehampton, N.Y., on Oct. 1.
The title? She branded her novel “Blackbelly,” the name of the breed of sheep she and her husband, Salem, raise on their ranch in Sherwood.
Actually, the action in the novel occurs not in Oregon, but in a fictional town in Idaho called Sweetwater.
“I spent a large part of my childhood on the Salmon River in Idaho,” she said. “Sweetwater is a town of my imagination, but I don’t have to stop and think about the precise sound of thunder in the hills, the smell of alfalfa hay or the taste of well water. Those elements of Idaho are imprinted in me and come out in the writing without much deliberate thought.”
The plot involves Chas McPherson, a loner Blackbelly sheep rancher in this fictional rural Idaho town, who is accused of burning out a neighboring Muslim family after 9-11.
From the first accusation to the surprising ending, Heather holds her reader on a tight tether of suspense. Why do I think she’s achieved a literary first?
Neither her agent nor her publisher could exactly peg the genre for this book. Heather didn’t like the suggestions they came up with, so she picked her own genre – Contemporary Western.
Indeed, it fits, and I just believe we will see more Contemporary Westerns being published in today’s literary market. “I do like the new category,” she said. “The 21st-century West is still filled with fascinating people eking out a living in a rugged landscape, struggling to keep the family farm. Contemporary Westerners are just as tough and pioneering as their forefathers.”
Heather found it easy to write about sheep ranching, not only because she and her husband and their son, Sam, live on a ranch, but because she is the daughter of a large-scale cattle rancher in Montana and has ranching blood coursing through her veins.
Because of the size of her Oregon ranch, she and her husband chose Blackbelly sheep as their livestock. “I have selectively bred my flock for striking black markings and red-chocolate colored coats,” she said.
While she certainly introduces the reader to sheep ranching, the novel is about the crime of bigotry against the Idaho ranching community's sole Muslim family. The protagonist, Chas McPherson and his father are both shepherds — he shepherds Blackbelly sheep and the elder shepherds souls as a fire-and-brimstone preacher who has an uncanny ability to detect and then publicly reveal the townspeople's sins.
When the arson occurs, the past fears and grudges of the townspeople contribute to their turning against the younger McPherson as the suspected arsonist.
I asked Heather why she chose this particular plot for her novel.
“I liked the idea of a generous man whose motives are so pure that he goes to extremes to ensure that no one would suspect him of being kind,” she said.
“That is an oversimplification of Chas McPherson because his actions are driven by his own suffering, but I wanted to illustrate how our suspicion can destroy something beautiful.”
I review books as part of my writing career. I would be willing to wager my reputation as a reviewer that this is not the last of Heather Sharfeddin we will see in print. Her action novel moved swiftly from opening to ending and while she entertained the reader with great characters, dialogue – even a touch of romance – she educated the reader about the Blackbelly sheep.
It is a strict code of reviewers not to give away the plot, so I am going to conclude this column by giving you a Web site link where you can sample Heather’s work: www.emailbookclub.com/alt/blackbelly/
Bill Duncan is editor of The Senior Times. He also writes a weekly column that is published each Thursday on the Opinion Page.
Not only does she raise a rare breed of sheep, she may have just achieved a literary first – a new genre of novel. Heather is a talented writer. Her first novel is to be released by Bridge Works Publishing Co. of Bridgehampton, N.Y., on Oct. 1.
The title? She branded her novel “Blackbelly,” the name of the breed of sheep she and her husband, Salem, raise on their ranch in Sherwood.
Actually, the action in the novel occurs not in Oregon, but in a fictional town in Idaho called Sweetwater.
“I spent a large part of my childhood on the Salmon River in Idaho,” she said. “Sweetwater is a town of my imagination, but I don’t have to stop and think about the precise sound of thunder in the hills, the smell of alfalfa hay or the taste of well water. Those elements of Idaho are imprinted in me and come out in the writing without much deliberate thought.”
The plot involves Chas McPherson, a loner Blackbelly sheep rancher in this fictional rural Idaho town, who is accused of burning out a neighboring Muslim family after 9-11.
From the first accusation to the surprising ending, Heather holds her reader on a tight tether of suspense. Why do I think she’s achieved a literary first?
Neither her agent nor her publisher could exactly peg the genre for this book. Heather didn’t like the suggestions they came up with, so she picked her own genre – Contemporary Western.
Indeed, it fits, and I just believe we will see more Contemporary Westerns being published in today’s literary market. “I do like the new category,” she said. “The 21st-century West is still filled with fascinating people eking out a living in a rugged landscape, struggling to keep the family farm. Contemporary Westerners are just as tough and pioneering as their forefathers.”
Heather found it easy to write about sheep ranching, not only because she and her husband and their son, Sam, live on a ranch, but because she is the daughter of a large-scale cattle rancher in Montana and has ranching blood coursing through her veins.
Because of the size of her Oregon ranch, she and her husband chose Blackbelly sheep as their livestock. “I have selectively bred my flock for striking black markings and red-chocolate colored coats,” she said.
While she certainly introduces the reader to sheep ranching, the novel is about the crime of bigotry against the Idaho ranching community's sole Muslim family. The protagonist, Chas McPherson and his father are both shepherds — he shepherds Blackbelly sheep and the elder shepherds souls as a fire-and-brimstone preacher who has an uncanny ability to detect and then publicly reveal the townspeople's sins.
When the arson occurs, the past fears and grudges of the townspeople contribute to their turning against the younger McPherson as the suspected arsonist.
I asked Heather why she chose this particular plot for her novel.
“I liked the idea of a generous man whose motives are so pure that he goes to extremes to ensure that no one would suspect him of being kind,” she said.
“That is an oversimplification of Chas McPherson because his actions are driven by his own suffering, but I wanted to illustrate how our suspicion can destroy something beautiful.”
I review books as part of my writing career. I would be willing to wager my reputation as a reviewer that this is not the last of Heather Sharfeddin we will see in print. Her action novel moved swiftly from opening to ending and while she entertained the reader with great characters, dialogue – even a touch of romance – she educated the reader about the Blackbelly sheep.
It is a strict code of reviewers not to give away the plot, so I am going to conclude this column by giving you a Web site link where you can sample Heather’s work: www.emailbookclub.com/alt/blackbelly/
Bill Duncan is editor of The Senior Times. He also writes a weekly column that is published each Thursday on the Opinion Page.
