Russ Desaulnier

This book begins with the back story of the Malones, two young brothers who leave Western Canada during the Depression in the 30s to make their fortune in England but end up in California after the war. Thereafter, the stories take place in California and encounter the lives of assorted narrators looking for love, meaning and purpose. In the last five pieces of the collection, older narrators are reflecting and seeking to terms for their lot. Overall, the collection can be seen as a fictional journey in the zeitgeist of California in the latter half of the 20th century, the golden land of dreams.

The stories in Making Waves address universal experiences from the ’60s and ’70s, when the liberation of that era was a challenge that many didn’t handle with grace or direction. While shambling through those uncertain times, these narrators maintain an unshakable optimism.