Swygert

Book excerpt: Growing up in a tiny rural town may not be appealing to everyone, but in this collection of short stories, author Jeffrey Harold Utterback shows that he can at least laugh about it. Each chapter is a stand-alone tale that provides a whimsical look at what life was like for a small-town boy growing up in the middle of nowhere. Utterback is a natural story teller. He welcomes the reader into his unusual world as his boyhood adventures and misadventures are brought to life on the page. The agricultural backdrop provides a unique canvas as the author lovingly uses the quirks and idiosyncrasies of his friends and family members to paint a picture of the big experiences he enjoyed in his little town. Peppered throughout are fond recollections of the features in his home-town which were a mischievous attraction during his childhood. Utterback describes from a boys point of viewthe details of the doghouse, the secrets of the cemetery, the routine of the railroad, the goings-on at the grain elevator, the etiquette at the elementary school, the formality of the 4-H Club, the art of bicycle maintenance, the science of burning garbage, and the complete desirability continuum of those highly valuable telephone pole insulators. Enjoy the ride as Utterback invites you along for a reality-inspired journey into his small-town boyhood of the 1970s.