The Salt Fields
by Stacy D. Flood
“Beautifully written and memorable.”
—Aimee Bender, author of The Particular Sadness of
Lemon Cake and The Color Master
On the day that Minister Peters boards a train from South Carolina heading north, he has nothing left but ghosts: the ghost of his murdered wife, the ghost of his drowned daughter, the ghosts of his father and his grandmother and the people who disappeared from his town without trace or explanation. In the cramped car, Minister finds himself in close quarters with three passengers also joining the exodus from the South—people seeking a new life, whose motives, declared or otherwise, will change Minister's life with devastating consequences.
FICTION / Southern
FICTION / Literary
FICTION / African American / Historical
Print: $14.00, EPUB $7.99
Print ISBN: 978-1-941360-49-1
Digital ISBN: 978-1-941360-50-7
Publication Date: March 9, 2021
Publicity Contact: Feliza Casano, publicity@lanternfishpress.com
Photo Credit: Jennifer Richard Photography
About the Author
Originally from Buffalo, and currently living in Seattle, Stacy D. Flood’s work has been published nationally, and performed on stages nationwide as well as in the Puget Sound Area. He has been an artist-in-residence at DISQUIET in Lisbon, as well as The Millay Colony of the Arts, and he is the recipient of a Getty Fellowship to the Squaw Valley Community of Writers.
Author Links
Comp Titles
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Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward
Talking Points for Booksellers & Librarians
Themes of classic Southern Gothic fiction explored by an #ownvoices author in this lyrical debut novella
Flood's playwriting background shines in the intimacy of the conversations in the train car
Praise for The Salt Fields
“There’s a beautiful formality to this writing that beckons a reader in, and then the vibrancy of the dialogue and the surreal allure of the scenes surprise and open up the story. A novella both stamped in time, and timeless, Flood has made something memorable here.”
—Aimee Bender, author of The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake and The Color Master
"The Salt Fields is a beautiful and powerful novella . . . with lyrical prose that had me spellbound from the first few sentences. Stacy D. Flood is a remarkable talent, and I can't wait for the world to know his name."
—Edan Lepucki, author of Woman No. 17 and California
"Hyperreal yet hallucinatory, The Salt Fields fits a layered multigenerational saga into the fast-paced jaunt of a novella. A riveting story that mystifies even as more and more is revealed."
—Siel Ju, author of Cake Time
“Stacy Flood captures the feelings that arise in powerful and precise language, always up to the task. The birds that haunt the landscape and the momentary nuances of light are told as vividly as language can offer. The book is both tragic and beautiful.”
—Maxine Chernoff, author of Here, Camera, Under the Music, and Bop
"The Salt Fields is a gem—the kind of book you'll want to underline, dog-ear, study, teach, and beg your friends to read."
—Christina Clancy, author of The Second Home and Shoulder Season
“Stacy Flood’s first novella is a marvel. . . . The Salt Fields will stay with you long after the last page.”
—Toni Mirosevich, author of Pink Harvest