My friend Mike and I were equally to blame. We were eight years old. He got just as drunk as me, I think. My memory’s kinda fuzzy. We learned a lesson or two that day. The scene of the crime was a big country wedding. Two days of it . . . or so they … More Two ‘Spirited’ Boys
Imagine this. You open the front door and see your 11-year-old daughter bleeding from cuts to her mouth and face . . . her two front teeth are missing . . . her right arm is broken. That sight greeted Tracey’s mother at their front door one spring afternoon. The full story came out later … More The Kite
Elbow Falls is nestled in a tree-lined valley of the Rocky Mountains. Hiking trails abound. Spring floods often change the valley, catching hikers unaware. Here’s what happened to one pair of venturesome hikers. Larry and Shannon were new to being a couple . . . and they were enjoying it more and more. They’d discovered … More The Elbow Follies
Winters in the northern states can be brutal. One weekend, a massive snowstorm blew in from the Great Lakes, blanketing St. Paul and most of the surrounding area. That’s when Jack, the newest articling lawyer at Peters Wilson Atkinson got caught by the storm in a town 30 miles from St. Paul. He’d been visiting … More No Ordinary Snowstorm
Jake had no plans to pull a stunt like that on his parents. At least, not at first. Jake’s young family was camping for the weekend with his parents to celebrate their 40th anniversary. Saturday afternooon, on the spur of the moment, Jake’s parents had decided to go into town to get more supplies for … More Don’t Mess With Old Folks
“We’re going on a field trip,” our teacher told us just before classes should have started. His announcement would lead to quite an adventure before that day was over. We were excited . . . none of us had done much schoolwork anyway since early May. We were happy to escape from our one-room country … More The Wild Man
Christmas has all kinds of side effects. Little Tommy’s Christmas was no exception. To appreciate what happened, we need to understand that most boys are attracted to things mechanical. Maybe it’s in our genes. Tommy was no exception. But Tommy had a disadvantage – there were no male influences in his house, at first. Tommy’s … More Tommy’s Christmas Gift
A man from the Salvation Army store came, took one look, and stammered something about being right back. A few hours earlier, we’d described on the phone the amount of surplus furniture filling our extra-large double-car garage. “I’ll be there with the van,” he’d said. “How big is your van?” I asked. “Oh, one of … More Empty Nesting
David never knew his great grandfather, but he loved being out on the water in the late gentleman’s fishing boat. That affinity for water would soon lead to some memorable experiences. Soon after David would arrive at his grandparents’ cottage, he’d be in the boat and roaring out onto the lake. Unlicensed 12-year-olds shouldn’t be … More Water Wings
The house was small . . . two bedrooms. An upright piano dominated the living room. The big window was convenient . . . left of the piano bench where he was sitting. “Matthew William Hansen!” his mother called out. “You’re supposed to be practicing!” Mom was in the kitchen. She could hear Matt poking … More And The Winner Is . . .
JAMES OSBORNE NOVELS 