Beachcombing at Miramar

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY JUN 3, 1996

It's a common enough fantasy, moving to a hut on the beach, but Bode, author of the word-of-mouth bestseller First You Have to Row a Little Boat (1993), lives it. In this lyrical memoir, he imparts some of the quiet wonder he's found in his simple, unhurried existence. Before Bode came to Miramar, Calif., he toiled for years at a New York public relations firm that promised to make him a millionaire. But he fled, to work as a freelance writer. After 30 years of marriage, his children grown, he divorced his wife and settles on the beach. Bode cautions that "a beachcomber's life is a demanding one that calls for discipline and zeal... it's the endless seeing that causes the psychic strain. It's the richness of life in the tidal zone." The seeing here is clear-eyed and limned in sculpted, resonant prose, as Bode tells of soaking up natural beauty while confronting personal demons. He recoils when an old business associate pressures him to ghostwrite a speech: A "ghost" is what he doesn't want to be. Frantic, lonely people cross his path, as does a vibrant Portuguese woman. A dowdy, elderly couple walk past his porch. The man is bald and the woman has a wart on her cheek, but their smiles are radiant. With contemplative intensity, Bode creates here one of those small miracles of writing able to pierce the heart. Author tour.