Thomas Steinbeck

El capitán de barco Jeremiah Macy Hammond es uno más de los hijos del Nuevo Mundo. Por su profesión, debe enfrentarse a piratas, violentas tormentas y enfermedades mientras traza rutas ignotas a través del océano Pacífico y abre mercados nuevos en Hawái, México y China. Allí conoce a la hermosa Loto de Plata, la bienamada hija de una opulenta familia de empresarios cantoneses. Ambos se enamoran apasionadamente y corren aventuras que darán forma a sus vidas; su amor trasciende las fronteras, los océanos y las culturas, y el matrimonio acaba estableciéndose en la costa norte de una California que comienza a prosperar económicamente en un clima de creciente racismo.

Thomas Steinbeck has been praised by Publishers Weekly for his stylistic brilliance and accomplished voice. Now, his enthralling novel In the Shadow of the Cypress blends history and suspense with literary mastery and brings vivid realism to Californias rich heritage. In 1906, the Chinese in California lived in the shadows. Their alien customs, traditions, and language hid what they valued from their neighbors . . . and left them open to scorn and prejudice. Their communities were ruledand dividedby the necessity of survival among the many would-be masters surrounding them, by struggles between powerful tongs, and by duty to their ancestors. Then, in the wake of natural disaster, fate brought to light artifacts of incredible value along the Monterey coast: an ancient Chinese jade seal and a plaque inscribed in a trio of languages lost to all but scholars of antiquity. At first, chance placed control of those treasures in the hands of outsidersthe wayward Irishman whod discovered them and a marine scholar who was determined to explore their secrets. The path to the truth, however, would prove to be as tangled as the roots of the ancient cypress that had guarded these treasures for so long, for there are some secrets the Chinese were not ready to share. Whether by fate, by subtle design, or by some intricate combination of the two, the artifacts disappeared again . . . before it could be proved that they must have come there ages before Europeans ever touched the wild and beautiful California coast. Nearly a century would pass before an unconventional young American scientist unearths evidence of this great discovery and its mysterious disappearance. Taking up the challenge, he begins to assemble a new generation of explorers to resume theperilous search into the oceans depth . . . and theshadows of history. Armed with cutting-edge, moderntechnology, and drawing on connections to powerful families at home and abroad, this time Americans and Chinese will follow together the path of secrets that have long proved as elusive as the ancient treasures that held them.This striking debut novel by a masterful writer weaves together two fascinating eras into one remarkable tale. In the Shadow of the Cypress is an evocative, dramatic story that depicts California in all its multicultural variety, with a suspense that draws the reader inexorably on until the very last page.

A orillas de un mar callado es un conjunto de siete relatos o novelas breves creados por Thomas Steinbeck, a partir de las historias y cuentos que oía contar a su padre –el escritor y premio Nobel Jo

Here is an unprecedented fiction debut that is cause for celebration. Growing up in a family that valued the art of storytelling and the power of oral history, Thomas Steinbeck now follows in his fathers footsteps with a brilliant story collection. Down to a Soundless Sea resonates with the rich history and culture of California, recalling vivid details of life in Monterey County from the turn of the century through the 1930s. Steinbeck accomplishes an amazing feat: his stories have the feel of classic literature, but his haunting voice, forceful narrative drive, and dazzling imagery are unmistakably his own.In seven stories, Steinbeck traces the fates and dreams of an eccentric cast of characters, from sailors and ranchers, to doctors and immigrantsas each struggles to carve out a living in the often inhospitable environment of rocky cliffs, crashing surf, and rough patches of land along the California coast and the Big Sur. In Blind Luck, a wayward orphan finds his calling at sea, only to learn that life must concede to the whims of authority and the ravages of nature. In Dark Watcher, with the country at the start of the Great Depression, a professor craves a plausible discovery to boost his academic standingand encounters the Indian myth of a shadowed horsemen that may ruin his career. An Unbecoming Grace tracks the route of a country physician who cares for an ill-tempered curbut feels more concern for the well-being of the patients beleaguered young wife. The collection concludes with Sing Fat and the Imperial Duchess of Woo, a novella that follows the tragic love story between a young apothecary and the woman he hopes to marry.Deeply felt and richly imagined, full of compelling drama and historical authenticity, Down to a Soundless Sea heralds the arrival of a bold new voice in fiction. Thomas Steinbeck has written stories as memorable and rugged as the coastline that inspired them.