The University of Wisconsin Press


Fiction / Wisconsin

 

Star Lake Saloon and Housekeeping Cottages
A Novel
Sara Rath

Library of American Fiction


"A diversion as pleasant as a quiet summer day at the lakeshore." —Publishers Weekly

"Sara Rath's keen sense of detail and tender eye for small-town mysteries and interstices make this a heartfelt debut."
—Jacquelyn Mitchard, author of The Deep End of the Ocean and The Breakdown Lane

When Madison writer Hannah Swann unexpectedly inherits her uncle's rundown resort in the Wisconsin northwoods, her first thought is to sell the place. Soon, though, unlikely partnerships and new relationships lead to life-changing events for Hannah, her college-age daughter, and all who surround them. From safeguarding the wilderness to fixing the plumbing to taking a chance on new love, Hannah has plenty to engage her imagination at Star Lake.

"Rath combines breezy humor with a little adventure, a little mystery and some serious politics. "The serious part came first,' says Rath of the story of Hannah Swan, a UW–Madison English professor who unwillingly inherits an "up north" resort from a reclusive uncle and then finds herself caught up between the locals who want to keep Star Lake a fishing resort and a mining company that wants to buy her out. . . . Readers can take the novel as "a story about a woman going through changes, mother/daughter relationships, wilderness conservation, a funny commentary on sexuality, or just as a fun story."—Linda Falkenstein, Isthmus

"Often hilarious, and always engaging."—Trudy Lewis, University of Missouri–Columbia

a black and white photo of Sara Rath. She has glasses and is wearing a dark turtleneck sweater. Photo credit: Nancy Rubly Sara Rath is the author of four volumes of poetry and five nonfiction books, including The Complete Cow. She has also written for television and film. She lives in Spring Green, Wisconsin.

There is a presskit for this novel.

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Of Related Interest:
the cover of the CD of Star Lake features a close-up of the same illustration of a woman dangling her legs over the side of a boat on a Wisconsin Lake. Star Lake Saloon and Housekeeping Cottages
An Abridged Audio Book
Sara Rath
As read by Jim Fleming on Wisconsin Public Radio's Chapter a Day program


Cover image of book has a woman with her hand on her forehead and a ghost in the background.Night Sisters
A Novel
Sara Rath

“[A] witty blend of the occult, suspense, mystery and a dash of romance . . . With an unexpected ending and moments of laugh-out-loud humor, Rath delivers a satisfying paranormal melodrama.”—Publishers Weekly

Image of a woman walking along a dock with a canoe in the waterThe Waters of Star Lake
A Novel
Sara Rath


“Readers will enjoy how Rath has thrown in a bit of everything—mystery, family drama, love story, and comedy—and will certainly like getting to know Hannah as she fights big business, hot flashes, and her own resistance to this wild and lovely place.”—Booklist

 

The cover of Rath's novel is a photo illustration of a woman dangling her legs over the edge of a boat on a Wisconsin lake. She sports blue flip-flops. The boat is named the Sara Rath.

August 2006

LC: 2005008263 PS
334 pp.   6 x 9

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Paper $24.95 t
ISBN 978-0-299-21524-8
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  The Terrace Books logo is designed in the shape of a book with a Union chair in silhouette on the cover. The words Terrace Books, Madison, Wisconsin appear also.
A trade imprint of the University of Wisconsin Press


"Readers will enjoy how Rath has thrown in a bit of everything mystery, family drama, love story, and comedyand will certainly like getting to know Hannah as she fights big business, hot flashes, and her own resistance to this wild and lovely place."
Booklist


"The notion that life in the North Woods of Wisconsin could save someone from midlife ennui and misdirection may sound a bit far-fetched or sentimental, but Sara Rath pulls it off in her novel "Star Lake Saloon and Housekeeping Cottages." This light-hearted family drama/mystery follows teacher and writer Hannah Swann as she navigates through some serious life changes."

The Capital Times

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