Alley Pond Park
by Zachary Gordon’73
Shepherdess Books, 2024
Set in part at Beloit College during the Beloit Plan years, circa 1969-1973, Alley Pond Park follows socially awkward Seth Matthews from his arrival at the college in 1969, where he aspires to be “a Woodstock man,” to a drug-fueled odyssey through Mexico, and his ascendance during the 1980’s avarice of Wall Street, where he single-mindedly focuses on becoming a Lehman Brothers partner.
This yearning and striving, and the story itself, is driven by Seth’s insecurity and unresolved family secrets. Readers may find themselves hating the lead character’s blatant narcissism one moment, then rooting for his survival the next.
This is an epic tale of a flawed, loving, confused man who persists in finding his way in a difficult world, and ultimately a universal story of finding oneself despite the lies and secrets buried within a family.
(All author royalties will be donated to Beloit College.)