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Excerpt from the foreword

“Winter Season” is the story of Oscar, a school teacher, held to his small-town place by his family, by his memories, by his insecurities, and especially by his mother, who wants him to marry her chosen bride and create grandchildren.

There’s also religion in “Winter Season.” Esther and Oscar search for community in God, and this, I know, also informs Ms. Rice’s worldview. She’s smart, though. Instead of adhering strictly to Biblical morals and the judgments that come with them, she’s quick to point out the inconsistencies and contradictions that real life can throw into our very human interpretation of what spirituality and belief in a higher power are. These are dangerous, difficult topics, but when Esther calls out a young pastor for lack of compassion, instead of her being punished, we see a situation where a person in a position of power is forced to rethink dogma in human terms. It’s a deftly managed lesson in compassion and growth.

These words are real words. These situations are real situations, small-town situations, dinners and country dances. Esther and Oscar balance the need to do the work they’re good at and to be proud of with the dangers and heartaches that go with them. Oscar loves Esther, but she may return to being a cop, and the incident that made her retire in the first place. Esther loves Oscar, but he’s firmly in the grip of his family and a teaching job that causes him more pain than his body and mind can take. The weight of trying to lead young people to adulthood and watching them fall into the same traps he’s living complicate Oscar’s existence. We want Esther and Oscar to find happiness, but it’s clear these problems may be too much for them to overcome, that happiness may come with too high a price, or might just be unattainable.

The words in “Winter Season” are agonized over; they are chosen with care. These characters are real characters.

There’s real hurt in here, and that hurt certainly comes from within Ms. Rice. It’s definitely intensely personal. So I guess the truth is I do know her. Everything is there in her words: fiction, yes, but informed by fact and experience.

And this is what fiction should be. A place where anyone can sit down and communicate with others about the deep feelings that move them, trouble them, and bring them joy.

– Ted Wallenius
https://tedsdeskof1000voices.com/

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