Carlton Sortwell

Carlton Sortwell is nine years old, and he loves two things deeply: Meredith Sewall, who sits in front of him in school, and the game of baseball. In his eponymous novel, Carlton experiences both passionate joys and unspeakable sorrows as he grows from a child in Maine to a young man in Massachusetts. Baseball can be a harsh mistress, but both the game and the girl offer Carlton redemptive powers as well.

The first chapter is free on my blog at Chapter 1

(It is available as an E-Book. Order one now!: Order!

Email John at: johnagouldv@gmail.com

The Ecology of the Heart (EBOOK ONLY)
The Ecology of the Heart is a novel of discovering America in 1976, the Bicentennial, and in so doing discovering atonement and peace. Leaving behind a crumbling marriage, thirty-year-old Sam Sewall sets out from Wiscasset on a ten-speed bicycle, heading west, alone, foundering emotionally and physically.                         During his journey, he recalls the strange events
                       that set him in motion.
                      :: full review

The Greenleaf Fires (EBOOK)
The Greenleaf Fires is a novel of renunciation and redemption, the story of a man’s struggle to cut himself away from his father.  The setting is rural Maine.  Alcott Greenleaf sets fires, serves a prison sentence, fights in Guam during the Second World War, and eventually finds peace through his young, damaged son.

                        :: full review

The Withering Child (Autographed Copies Available)
Told from a father’s perspective, The Withering Child is the story of a young boy’s profound reaction to the disruptive forces of change.  John A. Gould’s artful narrative of a domestic crisis aptly gauges the subjective undercurrents of contemporary family life.  Indeed, parents who read it will confront facets of their
                       own – and their children’s – expectations and
                       apprehensions
                      .:: full review

The Grammar of Alistair Barnstable
The Grammar of Alistair Barnstable is a story and a grammar and teaching text all in one. John Gould's engaging and amusing explanations of the basics prove that learning grammar can be fun.  A pleasure for grammar students of all ages.

:: full review

Dance Class
Dance Class offers an extraordinary collection of student essays about Anthony Powell’s great comic novel A Dance to the Music of Time.  The young authors not only discuss issues of character, plot, and theme, but they also investigate historical background, chart personal relevance, parody characters and
                         situations, even – in one student’s case – write a                          treatment for a drama
                       :: full review