Orchards of Almonds

About the Book

When thirty-five-year-old Bill Armature learns he’s inherited a house in California, he leaves Detroit, Michigan, to deal with his new home. Armature believes his stay in Chico will be temporary and leases an apartment for just three months. Soon this man of many hats—political cartoonist, fisher, hunter, former footballer, father, and husband—finds himself teaching at Chico State and fiddling in politics. He attempts to fathom the roots of love and fatherhood—of betrayal, death, and loss—while searching for ways to fill the lonely places inside. Orchards of Almonds features characters that include Kennedys alive and dead, LBJ and company, and Ronald Reagan, along with California politicos, academics, Vietnam protesters, and movie stars. While weaving author Donald Junkins’ semi-autobiographical story, it provides an insider’s view of California politics in the 1960s.

Praise for the work of Donald Junkins “Donald Junkins’ Half Hitch perfectly captures an American era and the story of a life caught in its baffling attitudes toward manhood, religion, and sex.” —Tracy Kidder, Pulitzer Prize and National Book award winner “Junkins is a highly regarded American poet and one of the world’s celebrated experts on Hemingway. How encouraging to see this stunning appearance in the world of the novel!” —Robert Kaiser, Author, RFK Must Die

About the Author

DONALD JUNKINS was a full professor at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, where he directed the master of fine arts program in English for ten years. He won three National Endowment for the Arts awards and a grand prize for poems at New Letters Journal. He currently lives in Deerfield, Massachusetts with his wife, Kaimei Zheng.