Additional information
by Ruth Clark (Author)
Aunt Net is a beautiful single mom with a dark, xenophobic nature. When her behavior becomes alarmingly erratic and she loses most of her friends, her frantic son, John, implores her to change her ways. With his tough love, loyal support, and a powerful epiphany, she becomes a more compassionate and loving Aunt Net. But shortly thereafter, she's met with a new challenge-daunting, almost impossible to conquer. In her debut novel, Odyssey, Ruth Clark explores xenophobia with wit and optimism. A published poet/songwriter, her distinctive writing style possesses a unique lyrical quality and brings Aunt Net to life, a refreshing character who will stay with the reader long after the last page.
Author Biography
Born "barefoot poor" in the Missouri Ozark Mountains, Ruth was blessed with two wise and loving parents and in spite of two older sisters, "who I'm convinced were put on earth to make my life a livin' hell," she enjoyed an idyllic, country childhood, and has traveled a truly magnificent life journey. But growing up in what she called "the hatred belt of the country," if you were not "white, straight, and Protestant you were going to hell." These xenophobic beliefs around her clashed painfully with her childhood sensibilities and what her parents had taught her. Later on, as an adult, she became a tireless fighter for human rights-worker and renter, as well as animal rights, and was arrested and jailed more than once fighting for those rights and more than once having inequitable, false charges against her dismissed in the courtroom. Amidst fighting City Hall, Ruth became a successful fashion model, which afforded her the means to obtain two college degrees, one in English Literature, and one in Psychology. Her life experiences formed her distinctive writing style and led her to write the book Odyssey, as well as two others in the making, both relating to xenophobia and its devastating impact on our world. "Ours is a world of 'man's inhumanity to man," a desolate landscape of xenophobic fear and hatred. It's time for us to trade fear for courage, hatred for love-it's time for us to come together." Such were my thoughts when I first determined to write Odyssey, The Story Of A Lovelorn Xenophobe And Her Turbulent Voyage To The Romantic "Island Of Set Free."
