What Are Buzz Residents Reading?: Q&A with Elaine Schroller

This week, I interviewed Buzz resident Elaine Schroller about what she has read recently and loved. She selected Tangles by Kay Smith-Blum.

Oppenheimer was just the beginning... When a harpooned whale offers proof the Hanford Nuclear Reservation is endangering all life in the Columbia River Basin, Luke Hinson, a brash young scientist, seizes the chance to avenge his father’s death but a thyroid cancer diagnosis derails Luke’s research. Between treatments, he dives back in, making enemies at every turn. On an overnight trek, Luke discovers evidence that Mary, his former neighbor, embarked on the same treacherous trail, and her disappearance, a decade prior, may be tied to Hanford’s harmful practices mired in government-mandated secrecy. A love story wrapped in a mystery, this Cold War home-front tale reveals the devastating costs of the birth of the nuclear age, and celebrates the quiet courage of wronged women, the fierce determination of fatherless sons, and the limitless power of the individual.

Robert Dugoni, New York Times bestselling author of the Tracy Crosswhite series, raves: "In a well-crafted debut, Kay Smith-Blum provides the reader a ringside seat to the birth of the nuclear age and its human costs on those living in a small town cloaked in Cold War, government-mandated secrecy. Tangles is a tale of tragedy and loss, but also hope. A beautifully written, important story much like A Civil Action. It packs a punch and hits close to home." 

Here is what Elaine has to say about it:

"A love story wrapped in a mystery, this Cold War home-front tale reveals the devastating costs of the birth of the nuclear age, and celebrates the quiet courage of wronged women, the fierce determination of fatherless sons, and the limitless power of the individual." 

What is the best book you have read recently?
The best book that I have read recently is Tangles by Kay Smith-Blum. 

What did you like about it? What made it stand out to you? 
Normally I’m a WWI fiction enthusiast, so a nuclear-age, environmental tale isn’t in my usual To-Be-Read stack, but Tangles is an intriguing, gritty delve into the nuclear energy industry in general and, specifically the Hanford Nuclear Reservation along the Columbia River in Washington State. 

It’s the human factors that make Tangles fascinating: a scientist determined to make sense of what he witnesses, a young woman who became entangled in the same mystery, and myriad others who are affected when all life in the Columbia River Basin is threatened and the authorities are determined to keep it all secret from the public. 

Tangles is a perfect read when you’re not in the mood for yet another cozy mystery or European-theater WWII novel. As I read, I felt transported back to my younger days when I placed a “Give a Hoot, Don’t Pollute” bumper sticker on my first car. Kay’s writing is elegant and approachable and the parallels for those of us who live so close to one of the world’s major petrochemical complexes are riveting.

How did you learn about the book?
I’m a huge fan of authors whose books are not yet in the mainstream. Kay is a fellow member of the Women’s Fiction Writers Association, so I’ve been following the path of this book almost since its first draft. I fully expect to see Kay on a future edition of The Today Show or as an expert on a PBS program about nuclear energy.

What are you reading now?
My Life in France by Julia Child for her amusing personality shining through in every sentence and The Brother Cadfael series by Ellis Peters for pure escapism with a 12th-century soldier-turned-monk.

For those interested in meeting Kay and hearing about this book: On Tuesday, April 8 at 5:30 p.m., Kay will join Leisa Holland-Nelson and Shavonnah R. Schreiber at Culture Club HTX to talk about the secrets, coverups, and true events that inspired Tangles. Find details here.