American Odyssey by Michael De Stefano 💕 Behind the Scenes, Book Tour and $10 Gift Card Giveaway 💕 (Vintage Coming-of-Age)

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Virtue does not lie in the struggle for independence or what one must sacrifice for its behalf but in love that reinforces enduring friendship.

Set in Philadelphia in the mid-1970s, American Odyssey chronicles the coming-of-age journey of Addison Caldwell, Cillian James, and Joey Brosco. In their quest for independence, our trio encounters the recently widowed Leila Bennett, a former prostitute turned farm owner. For Leila, a sultry summer blossoms into an odyssey of hope and healing; for the boys, work and awakening. Leila—a girl discarded and rescued—teaches the threesome that virtue does not lie in the struggle for independence or what one must sacrifice for its behalf but in love that reinforces enduring friendship.

I wrote American Odyssey as a tribute to friendship—the kind of friendships experienced in another era. I was born in 1962, so culturally, in a coming-of-age sense, I am a product of the 70s. We didn't collect followers in the 70s; we made friends. There were no "likes" and "clicks" in the 1970s; it was a decade when friends could express themselves with impunity, not the impoverished and careful way we're forced to nowadays.

American Odyssey, although contentious and challenging, recalls a time when states' rights versus federal rights, pro-life versus pro-choice, and who you voted for were not dealbreakers for friendships and relationships; they were issues friends hashed out around a keg of beer in the woods.

The coming-of-age story in American Odyssey tends to mirror a nation's transition from the Vietnam War to Cold War anxiety. It challenges authority, questions faith, swings elbows, and steps on toes, but it’s all in the name of love and freedom. It’s a first-person narrative told by one of its core characters, Addison Caldwell. Am I Addison Caldwell? I won’t deny it. Nor will I deny the three-way friendship upon which the novel is based. If you read American Odyssey, and I hope you do, please understand that the things you encounter are not recommendations!

Thank you for being so interested.

Kindest regards,

Michael DeStefano

Joey emerged from the fields and Cillian from the kitchen. We tossed our bags in the bed of Leila’s behemoth pickup, and off we drove. Skipping the bus ride, we headed straight for Pittsburgh and the train station, blasting rockabilly music with the windows rolled down and enjoying our final time of what Leila called “hellraisin’.” As the train chugged west to east through Pennsylvania, I repeatedly asked myself: Who was Leila Bennett? Could she have been just a girl, any girl? Was Leila as common as any one of a million buttercups clustered in an open field and just as forgettable, or was she a four-leaf clover, a rare specimen who, over and over, would compel me to search for her in every crowd everywhere? Was she a young girl in a grown-up girl’s body or a grown-up girl as lost as any child would be when set to wander the vastness of the universe? Air and space: they can prove fickle entities. Not enough of each can kill you, and too much can kill you even faster. But whether we blossom in a vast field or cottage garden, in a way, we all want the same thing: the opportunity to strive for independence while enjoying the strength and comfort of unity. Leila had experienced that aspect of human desire for a time with Aunt Pearl, then later on, for a much briefer spell, with Uncle Dave. I hope, sooner than later, she finds just the right amount of air and space that allows her to bask in the beauty of youth while flourishing as a woman.

Michael DeStefano runs a hairstyling salon, where he has spent the past four decades beautifying the super people of Philadelphia. His past titles include the historical family saga The Gunslinger’s Companion, the comedy/tragedy Waiting for Grandfather, and The Bohemian. You can find these novels and other writings such as his love essays and perspective pieces at his blog site Michael’s Corner.