By
JAMES BRUNO (USA)
4.0 out of 5 stars A Spiritual as Well as Geographic Journey, October 7, 2011
This review is from: Sonora Symphony (Kindle Edition)
Dale Day has written a book that both educates and moralizes, bridging the modern warrior and his travails with the ancient legends and wisdom of Native Americans. The result is a fascinating journey into a man's soul as he embraces, sometimes painfully, the traditional to help heal a wounded modern soul.
Master Sergeant Ray Daniels is an Afghanistan veteran who has overcome his physical battle wounds. But the psychological wounds remain. Daniels is afflicted with nightmares rooted in battles in which he had lost comrades to the Taliban, losses he blames on himself for not being able to rescue them. But his mind won't allow him to recall the nightmares. This is a man caught in a ring of torment. He also represents the very real problem of America's soldiers afflicted with PTSD after repeated tours of duty in war zones. Daniels is helped by a sympathetic Papago tribe member and fellow vet named Joe Redmond who patiently introduces the injured Daniels to the magic and sear beauty of the Sonora desert as well as the healing powers of Indian legends. In a potentially dangerous ritual, Redmond exorcises the mental demons that afflict the soldier. The experience is transformative and bonds the two men spiritually.
SONORA SYMPHONY is as much a journey into one man's soul and his quest to recover his past in order to regain his future as it is one through America's majestic Southwest deserts. The author also recounts rich Native American lore that is so much overlooked in Western culture, lore that has much to offer in teaching morality and balance in human relations. SONORA SYMPHONY is not for readers looking for action and adventure, but rather for those who relish introspection, cultural depth and moral transformation. As such, it is literary in nature. Dale Day draws from the writer's nostrum, "Write what you know." A twenty-three-year Army vet and long-term resident of the Southwest, he has much to invest into his stories. SONORA SYMPHONY lends itself to a series, which Dale's readership would assuredly welcome.
Master Sergeant Ray Daniels is an Afghanistan veteran who has overcome his physical battle wounds. But the psychological wounds remain. Daniels is afflicted with nightmares rooted in battles in which he had lost comrades to the Taliban, losses he blames on himself for not being able to rescue them. But his mind won't allow him to recall the nightmares. This is a man caught in a ring of torment. He also represents the very real problem of America's soldiers afflicted with PTSD after repeated tours of duty in war zones. Daniels is helped by a sympathetic Papago tribe member and fellow vet named Joe Redmond who patiently introduces the injured Daniels to the magic and sear beauty of the Sonora desert as well as the healing powers of Indian legends. In a potentially dangerous ritual, Redmond exorcises the mental demons that afflict the soldier. The experience is transformative and bonds the two men spiritually.
SONORA SYMPHONY is as much a journey into one man's soul and his quest to recover his past in order to regain his future as it is one through America's majestic Southwest deserts. The author also recounts rich Native American lore that is so much overlooked in Western culture, lore that has much to offer in teaching morality and balance in human relations. SONORA SYMPHONY is not for readers looking for action and adventure, but rather for those who relish introspection, cultural depth and moral transformation. As such, it is literary in nature. Dale Day draws from the writer's nostrum, "Write what you know." A twenty-three-year Army vet and long-term resident of the Southwest, he has much to invest into his stories. SONORA SYMPHONY lends itself to a series, which Dale's readership would assuredly welcome.
James is the author of The Tribe which is selling extremely well on Amazon and which is an exciting book that will hold your interest throughout.
That is a very nice review.
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