When Salmon, Idaho, resident Margaret Hevel befriended a fellow sailor, she had no idea that his stories would become a novel.
"He asked me if I could write a few pages for his son about his wife and her favorite brother," said Hevel. As a freelance writer, Hevel had become a well-honed scribe, but even to her surprise writing this book seemed a little too easy.
"He just gave me a slip of paper to have permission to write the story," she said.
Granted writing autonomy, Hevel embarked on a journey almost around the world when she set forth to create "The Ivory Elephant." From Wales to Homer, Alaska, Hevel managed to weave a story that had unusual connections with many people all wanting to share their experiences. They are the stories of visiting service men, listening to elders in Wales and the education to the persecutions of World War II that enrich "The Ivory Elephant" with detail.
Hevel's main character, Jean, is a girl who is quickly transformed into a woman having to say goodbye to her brother due to the proclivities of war, which stripped her already menial life bare. However, she does find adventure and a new life from the rescue of an American Air Force pilot, and that brings different challenges and strength to her existence.
"The Ivory Elephant" recreates the past through reminiscent description and presents places and people as if history forgot.
Published in July 2006, "The Ivory Elephant" has only just begun to find its readership. "You are not going to be all things to all people, but if you can capture the hearts of some people then you've accomplished," said Hevel.
With the positive feedback from a few reviews and by working on promotion, Hevel anticipates that her book will find its audience. In the meantime, Hevel is busy co-authoring with her daughter a non-fiction book, "Parenting with Pets, the Magic of Raising Children with Animals." She is also pursuing another work of fiction entitled "Shoebox to the Past." It's based on true-life stories from the journals of New England women from the 1870s to 1970s.
On Sunday, Oct. 8, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Hevel will be at Chapter One Bookstore at 160 N. Main Street in Ketchum for a book signing of "The Ivory Elephant," which is available at Amazon, Barnes & Nobles and Chapter One Bookstore. For more information call 726-5425.
?The Ivory Elephant? by Margaret Hevel. Publish America. $19.95. 197pp.
