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KIRKUS REVIEWS
A World War II-era small town sparkles to life in this luminous memoir

Half a century after the death of his father Jud, manager of the railroad depot in the village of Republic, Mo., the author revisits his boyhood world in these epistolary recollections. In part, they are a subtle appreciation of the virtues that a son doesn't fully see in his father until he grows older himself—of Jud's hard work and skillfulness, his shrewd wisdom and his steady love for his family. But through them Alderman also sketches an enchanting portrait of the close-knit town and the lonesome farmsteads of the Missouri Ozarks surrounding it, as seen through the eyes of a boy growing to manhood.

There are youthful pranks and raucous baptisms that nearly drown their beneficiaries. There are beguiling neighborhood characters: a homeless man who grows succulent vegetables, a local "witch" who turns stones into cupcakes for kids, and a glamorous eighth-grader who smokes, kills snakes and steals honey from wild hives. There are darker threads, including a man who walks into town one day waving a gun and threatening to shoot someone. There's the dread of bad news from the front and the excitement of the war mobilization as transports carrying troops and tanks come bustling through. (The author's re-creations of the culture and technology of trains—the sleek aerodynamic locomotives, the ritual of handing up messages for the crew on radio-less expresses to snatch as they hurtle past—are an engrossing reminder of the vanished romance of railroading.)

Alderman's lyrical prose infuses these vignettes with evocative details—"I couldn't think of anything that smelled better than the fragrance of a cigarette freshly lit by a kitchen match in the cab of a workman's truck"—and a quiet humor. When he returns to find Jud's depot demolished, we're grateful that his vivid memories endure.

A funny, moving, finely wrought remembrance of a lost Middle America.

Set in a small town in middle America during the 1930s, 40s and 50s and evoking the poignant relationship of father and son, Letters to Jud is a beautiful novel-as-stories written in a most engaging and elegant narrative voice. The language of this book is pure pleasure: "We walked quietly along a side street to the next home and headed back to Elm Street where you delivered the last telegram. Neither of us said anything as we walked toward home. I listened to the squiffing sound my galoshes made in the snow and I felt the wet, cold touch of snowflakes against my face." The book does what the best literature does: it evokes the comedy and pathos of life; it evokes truth.

Lyrical and charming
In the stories that make up Letters to Jud, Don Alderman has crafted a work that reads both as an evocative, heart-warming, and often humorous portrait of another time and place, and a moving, personal love-letter to his father that is timeless in its appeal. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and more than once found myself alternately chuckling to myself and wiping tears from my eyes, sometimes in the same chapter. The stories are told with an affection, tenderness, and self-deprecating humor that is infectious. I highly recommend it.

I hope the world is full of families like yours and Isabel’s, where love and goodness and loyalty to one another are the glue that binds.

With fondest regards,

Stories of many other lives
The subtitle of this book is "Stories of another life" and I found that this could mean more than one other life. It is such a worthwhile read because it will hit so close to home with so many people. While you are reliving the author's stories of childhood and youth, you may find yourself reliving your own as well. As the people of Republic - Don's family, friends and the others - come fully to life in his expertly-crafted episodes, you discover that the same people in your own past, including yourself, start coming more into focus. I was especially captivated by the descriptions of trains from a time when steam locomotives were in their prime. The author is an accomplished storyteller, and we can and should learn from him.

The real deal
I was initially attracted to the book by the fact that I grew up in the same town, six years behind the author. I was pleasantly surprised that the book’s appeal wasn’t limited to the local color (I remembered most of the people he writes about and there is a mention of my father). As others have commented, this is a truly masterful recreation of the small town experience as we lived it over half a century ago. As such, it has an appeal that far transcends the regional interest. It plumbs deeply into the human experience and the importance of family. Highly recommended!

As delicious as fried chicken and apple pie
I read this book from cover to cover and reread portions with great relish. The characters and situations provide intimate details of a time in middle America people can now relive though this book. Many people will readily identify with the stories. The charming letters to Jud are as delicious as fried chicken and apple pie.

A trip to another time
This is a very special book; one that provides a window into a world long gone. “Letters to Jud” takes us back to a time when parents weren’t afraid to let their children explore; when everyone knew everyone else and took care of each other; when trains were mighty and wondrous. Jud’s and the author’s world – Republic, Missouri – was one neighborhood, one community. The antics and adventures of twin boys make this fun reading, particularly their encounters with the many colorful townspeople. The final chapter is filled with poignancy as the author traces the lines of where the depot once stood and we know that a building was not all that we lost.

I loved this book
I don’t often read a book that makes me laugh and cry at the same time, but this one did. Each chapter is a different slice of the author’s young life and whether you’re laughing out loud at the death of the old Dodge or the baptism of Gauze, or trying to read through the tears in your eyes during the tale of the Vegetable Man to the final farewell letter, this book is a magical trip to a time that no longer exists except in memories and books like this one. Don’t miss your chance to experience it.

A recommendation
I just finished reading “Letters to Jud” and want you to know how much I enjoyed every moment. I can’t tell you how often I had to stop and “share” a story with Edie, or how many times I laughed … or fought back tears. I will be recommending it to my friends.

Direct, compelling narrative
Reading this book was like sitting on the screened porch on a summer’s evening listening to your favorite uncle tell stories about what it was like growing up in a small town. It’s quiet, you can hear the noises of the evening in the background, but the voice is the main focus. If you grew up in a small town, these stories ring so clear, and if you did not, you can still understand the atmosphere created by the stories. The author created characters you want to meet, particularly Jud, Vegetable Man, Tom the storyteller. The style of writing is a very direct narrative but tinged with a certain bittersweet nostalgia that draws in the reader.

Thanks for writing this book
“Letters to Jud” is a great book, a great tribute to (the author’s) father, and an excellent collection of stories of past events that took place in Republic. There are funny stories—but more than fun—in those pages. While reading many of the stories I found tears running down my cheeks, because this book is a reflection of things past that will never be again.