Peter Rock Livres

“Swimming at night, to compare its slipperiness to that of a dream would be to ignore the work of staying afloat, the mesmerism brought on by the rhythm, the repetition of the strokes.” Beneath the surface of Lake Michigan there are vast systems: crosscutting currents, sudden drop-offs, depths of absolute darkness, shipwrecked bodies, hidden places. Peter Rock’s stunning autobiographical novel begins in the ’90s on the Door Peninsula of Wisconsin. The narrator, a recent college graduate, and a young widow, Mrs. Abel, swim together at night, making their way across miles of open water, navigating the currents and swells and carried by the rise and fall of the lake. The nature of these night swims, and of his relationship to Mrs. Abel, becomes increasingly mysterious to the narrator as the summer passes, until the night that Mrs. Abel disappears. Twenty years later, the narrator—now married with two daughters—tries to understand those months, his forgotten obsessions and dreams. Digging into old notebooks and letters, as well as clippings he’s preserved on the “psychic photography” of Ted Serios and scribbled quotations from Rilke and Chekhov, the narrator rebuilds a world he’s lost. He also looks for clues to the fate of Mrs. Abel, and begins once again to swim distances in dark water.

The collection features thirteen stories that explore unsettling moments when the familiar becomes strange and mysterious. Through encounters with strangers, ghosts, and shadowy figures, the narratives delve into themes of perception and the uncanny, inviting readers to reconsider their understanding of reality. Each tale offers a unique glimpse into the unexpected, challenging the boundaries of the ordinary.

Set against the backdrop of a secluded lifestyle, the narrative follows a girl and her father as they navigate life off the grid, away from the constraints of society. Their existence, marked by isolation and survival, reveals the complexities of their relationship and the challenges they face in a world that often overlooks those living in the shadows. Inspired by true events, the story delves into themes of resilience, connection, and the impact of societal norms on individual lives.

In the tradition of Jon Krakauer's "Into the Wild," Rock's "My Abandonment," inspired by a true story and told through the startlingly sincere voice of his young protagonist, offers a riveting and unsettling account of a girl and her father who live off the grid.

Having joined her older sister, Audra, and a mysterious man on a wilderness survival adventure, Vivian seeks a connection between the man and the mysterious writing appearing in her notebook.

A father and his estranged daughter reconnect to try to understand a decades-old trauma in this haunting novel, part ghost story, part lyrical exploration of family, aging, and how we remember the past. At age eleven, Helen disappeared in the wilderness of Mount Rainier National Park while camping with her father, Benjamin. She was gone for almost a week before being discovered and returned to her family. It is now twenty-five years later, and after more than two decades of estrangement, Helen and Benjamin reconnect at his home in Portland, Oregon, to try to understand what happened during the days she was gone. Meanwhile, Benjamin meets an odd pair, a woman and boy who seem driven to help him learn more about Helen's disappearance and send him on a journey that will lead to a murder house, uncanny possession, and a bone-filled body of water known as Sad Clown Lake, a lake that could only be found by getting lost, that was never in the same place twice. Passersthrough is a haunted, starkly lyrical exploration of family, memory, and the border between life and death.

Exploring the interplay between photography and storytelling, the author reflects on his past as a security guard in an art museum, where he crafted narratives for artworks. Reigniting this creative spark, he collaborates with five photographers, selecting images that inspire him to generate unique stories. Each narrative emerges organically from the chosen photographs, highlighting the relationship between visual art and written expression. This project showcases how images can shape and inform storytelling, revealing the embedded narratives within each photograph.