Apricot trees are rarities when it comes to blooming. Often attacked by early spring freezes, most trees will only produce fruit two out of every five years.
Just like in life, where years of bliss can suddenly be changed into a whirlwind of downfalls, Martha Egans fourth novel, An Apricot Year, metaphorically twists the demise of the apricot tree with her characters path in life.
Let It Grow Nursery and Garden will host Egan on Tuesday, Nov. 6 at noon where she will discuss and read from her newest book.
Egans main character, Luli Russell, a middle-aged woman, has always been confined to her role as a Wisconsin housewife. With her kids grown and her artistic expression bursting at the seams, her family surprises her with a vacation getaway to Santa Fe. Tragic events befall her while away and Russell must now rebuild and redefine her life with the help of newfound friends she encounters in Santa Fe.
Egan has lived in New Mexico for over 30 years. She owns Pachamama, a Latin American folk art and antiques shop located in Santa Fe. She began writing fiction because of an ugly run-in with American customs due to her relationship with Latin American importers, whom she received her shop antiquities from. That experience led her to write her first novel, Clearing Customs.
Egan has been intrigued with Latin American culture since her college days. Her books are filled with multi-cultural characters and bilingual writings. She graduated with a bachelors in Latin American history from the University of the Americas in Mexico City in 1967. She then spent two years in the Peace Corps, working with credit unions in Venezuela.
She has written a total of four fiction and two nonfiction novels. An Apricot Year is a finalist in three categories for the 2012 New Mexico/Arizona Book awards.
You can purchase Egans work from her publishing website papalotepress.com, Amazon or Barnes and Noble. Visit with the author at Let It Grow, 90 North Mildred Road, Nov. 6 for lunch, conversation and to hear the author bring her story to life. Call 565-3099 for more information.