Maybe you miss the sixties—or maybe you missed them. This lively story follows a somewhat clueless college grad who left the straight and narrow in 1970, looking for what she missed while she was sitting in classrooms and her peers were…otherwise engaged.
Liberated by graduation, she begins her search in Chicago, where she meets a young Communist named Dan and does her best to pass herself off as a kindred spirit. When he invites her to join the Iowa commune where he lives, she decides to take a leap of faith and move there.
Things don’t exactly work as planned—Dan rejects her as a comrade. But she manages to get along with everyone anyway, and she finds a special friend in Susie. To her great surprise, she enjoys working the land more than she could have imagined. In her first few months, she integrates with the routines of chores and seasonal labor and comes to love her rural life.
One fall day an unexpected encounter with the neighbors opens her world still more. Meg and Alan are back-to-the-landers, dedicated to a spiritual life. Her world expands as they introduce her to concepts such as reincarnation, which she only half believes. Moving through and beyond the drugs and politics of hippie culture, she finds, eventually, what she didn’t know she was looking for.
Whether this story mirrors your own experience or recounts facets of the sixties you missed, you’ll enjoy this colorful and inspiring tale. A quick read full of rich descriptions, engaging characters, and unexpected turns.
Balboa Press, February 2017, Softcover, 5.5×8.5, 126 pages, $11.99.
E-book, $3.99.
Reviews
I love to find the rare personal story that won’t let me move until I’m finished—and makes me wish for more! One of my favorite lines, ever, set the stage for a profound outcome and captures the essence of every seeker: “This is the story of a search I didn’t know I was on, for something I didn’t know existed.”
—Marshall Haley, retired journalist
Fitzgerald is an author who speaks my language with her attention to bright details that I can relate to. Her skill and sensitivity tap into the aspirations, dreams, and searches we all share. Her style is humorous, breezy, and straightforward. Yet, lest you think Adventures of a Wannabe Hippie would be a fluff-read, her characters have depth and psychology revealed that make us dig deep and consider what message they are giving us.
Uplifting, thought-provoking, and satisfying on many levels, Fitzgerald’s novella is a treasure that transports us to another time and place—and somewhere in our own hearts.
—Lois Drake, author, Issa—The Greatest Story Never Told
A delightful novella that brings a glimpse of communal life in the 70s, the insightful and inspiring realizations on early stages of the spiritual path.
—David Milak, proprietor, Sacred Mysteries Bookstore, Livingston, MT
At once fun and lighthearted yet moving and thought-provoking, Adventures of a Wannabe Hippie is an easy read, full of descriptions that make you feel like you’re there and situations that evoke reactions—not just in the characters, but in the reader. This little book takes you on a journey that will not leave you the way it found you!
—CA, Dallas, TX
The young protagonist could be anyone searching for that “something” that seems to be eluding them. I read it in one sitting, but I’m still pondering some of the ideas. I definitely recommend this book.
—ACL, Ann Arbor, MI
I enjoyed the narrator’s description of her arrival and reception in Iowa. It just rings so true to the ambiance of 70s hippiedom.
—LB, Tokyo
A fun, quick read! My interest steadily increased as the story took some unique turns and twists. Makes you ponder and wonder. Enjoy!
—CW, Pasadena, CA
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