"Glimpses of the life of a California town are the hallmark of this small but worthwhile book...The result is both moving and telling...The elegance of Woodward's prose enhances his subject matter...this is a good book, well worth the reader's time..." ForeWordreviews.com “As far as trusting Woodward, he’s got us from the title page. He’s a writer, and not only a writer with degrees to prove it, but substance, social concern, and prose that is both graceful and tender. Often he focuses on the dark tragedies that result from bottom-line, monied decisions by corporate, civic, and administrative top dogs. He has an uncanny eye for mid-summer hillsides near Los Angeles, burning “like the surface of the sun,” fires that “rumble like a river through darkness.” Later, he speaks of snow on “frost-burnt azaleas,” of “daffodil bulbs asleep underground,” and “ice sheeting the lily pond.” Academic and civic issues aside, Woodward takes us deep into the heart of his suburban neighborhood, into his world, and when we emerge, we are exhilarated with ideas, with fun, with pain, and with admiration… The structure of Woodward’s book is linear, as he chronologically recreates his eight-month-long stint as a newspaper columnist. After the assignment folds, Woodward continues writing, turning to memoir and remembrance, a poem about his father, and some short stories, and thus ends his “year in writing.” It is an effective, gripping structure about a man’s deep concern for his community, for his sons’ education future, and for small commercial enterprises… Woodward has a mature, sustained mastery of narrative, and each of his essays is fueled with civic, issue-oriented emotion. Not only can Woodward cut to the meat of his arguments, but his style continually nourished his judgments and insights. Each of his essays is perfectly crafted.” iUniverse Inc.