Honor

"Incredibly poignant... The characters and the personality of the town are richly drawn.... It is a great tale."- Shawn Newcomer, James V. Brown Library

What is it to be honorable? In the eyes of others? In your own heart? Is it what you've done or who you are?

Jeff Smith was, as his bully of a brother-in-law Gene Engelhardt was fond of retelling, "what the cat dragged in." A scruffy, bearded hippie Gene's sister Bonnie had met and fallen deeply in love with decades ago at a Washington peace rally against the Vietnam War. Even shaved and doing whatever the Engelhardts wanted, his in-laws never accepted or approved of Jeff. Now, Jeff is saddled with a family, a dead end job, and, after Bonnie died of cancer, a mountain of debt. Only Jeff has a secret and a unique possession that could possibly solve his financial problems and help his daughter realize her dream, if he can ever overcome the guilt and shame that has haunted him for over thirty years.

Honor, a novella by Daniel Grotta, explores the human cost when patriotism, personal ethics and the deep bond of friendship collide.