After the Fog
by Kathleen Shoop
For every woman who thinks she left her past behind…
It’s 1948 in the steel town of Donora, Pennsylvania, site of the infamous “killing smog.” Public health nurse, Rose Pavlesic, has risen above her orphaned upbringing and created a life that reflects everything she missed as a child. She’s even managed to keep her painful secrets hidden from her doting husband, loving children, and large extended family.
When a stagnant weather pattern traps poisonous mill gasses in the valley, neighbors grow sicker and Rose’s nursing obligations thrust her into conflict she never could have fathomed. Consequences from her past collide with her present life, making her once clear decisions as gray as the suffocating smog. As pressure mounts, Rose finds she’s not the only one harboring lies. When the deadly fog finally clears, the loss of trust and faith leaves the Pavlesic family—and the whole town—splintered and shocked. With her new perspective, can Rose finally forgive herself and let her family’s healing begin?
***Independent Publisher Awards:
2012 Silver Medal, Best Regional Fiction–Mid-Atlantic***
***National Indie Excellence Awards:
2012 WINNER– Literary Fiction***
“I have great admiration for an author who will write her main character so real. Rose, although admirable and almost heroic in the face of such a horrible situation, was not always likable but she behaved as many of us would given her circumstances. As a reader, I think it would be easy for an author, having created the main character, to write her as perfect. It takes talent to imbue that main character with real qualities… not all good but relatable and pertinent to the situations she finds herself in.” – http://Bagsbooksandbonjovi.blogspot.com
“I thought the writing was flawless…Highly recommend for almost anyone…there are a few mildly suggestive scenes, nothing too graphic.” (5/5 stars) (Book Princess Sophia)
“Ms. Shoop’s writing style is some of the best I’ve seen recently, and I fell right into this story with the greatest of ease, eager to see what would unfold next. The multi-layers of drama only added to the increasing tension in the book, and even though it had a fulfilling conclusion, I was sad to see it end.” (5/5 stars). (Karen “ReaderGirl” Matthews)
From The Author
The novel, After the Fog, and liked the historical aspects that lent the character’s personal struggles some weight. I loved the historic 1888 Children’s Blizzard disaster that pushed the characters into making decisions they wouldn’t have normally made.
So, while making a list of interesting disasters that might work for my new book my mother suggested I look into Donora, Pennsylvania’s 1948 deadly temperature inversion. Donora’s what? I shouldn’t have had to ask that question as I grew up just up the turnpike and a few decades after what was the first environmental disaster that the US government paid any attention to.
Well…I began to dig around and what I found out about the disaster was perfect for a book. It would be historical fiction as the “five days of fog,” gave me my backdrop, but my characters would be fictional. Best of all I would get to write about western Pennsylvania—the place I’ve lived for most of my life.
Rose Pavlesic—Community Nurse and Mom in After the Fog
When I originally began to write After the Fog, I had thought the main character, Rose, would be a mid-wife. Many babies were delivered at home then and the mill nurses often helped around town. Once I finished my first round of research I knew Rose needed to be a community nurse as it was a natural way to put her in the homes of the sick and dying citizens and would allow me to avoid information dumps. This type of nurse split her days between office hours and home visits. They worked closely with doctors and cared for everyone in town from infants to those nearly dead.
A little Romance…
Okay, just a little to spice up the gritty life and death decisions and circumstances. What’s more human and necessary than love in times of trouble? After the Fog will never be mistaken for a romance novel but I love Rose’s and Henry’s marriage. They adore each other, but like most couples, neither is perfect in the relationship. And, they both have secrets they’d rather keep buried in the past.
The 1948 Killing Smog
Obviously the characters, their actions, plotlines and personal journeys in After the Fog are fiction. But, I used the facts related to the documented timeline of the darkening fog/smog and the types of illnesses that were reflected in reports of the disaster as obstacles for the characters. I also used the odd back and forth between some people understanding the fog was abnormal and others not thinking the five days were unique at all until the body count was complete. In addition, I found that primary and secondary sources disagree with certain aspects of what the days were like and who was to blame for the illness and death.
I will treasure this book as the interviews I did with eye-witnesses and the relationships I formed while wandering around Donora. These experiences are as unique as the town and its attention-grabbing disaster that changed the way the world viewed industrial waste.
About The Author
Thank you for reading about me here and for purchasing my novel! I’m married with two children. I’ve been seriously writing for almost a decade although I dabbled much earlier than that! I’ve had short stories published in four Chicken Soup for the Soul books, am a regular contributor to a local magazine, Pittsburgh Parent, and have had essays in local newspapers as well.
I have a PhD in Reading Education and currently work as a Language Arts Coach at a school in Pittsburgh. I work with teachers and their students in grades k-8 and am lucky to learn something new from them every time I walk through their doors.
My first novel, The Last Letter (2011 IPPY Gold Medal–Regional Fiction, Midwest, 2011 Indie Excellence Finalist Award for Historical Fiction and Regional Fiction, 2011 International Book Awards Finalist for Historical Fiction and Best New Fiction), was a fascinating trip through history, punctuated with fictional characters and events. The idea for the story grew from my great-great grandmother’s letters (see My Dear Frank for the complete set of letters!) written during the year of her engagement to Frank Arthur. The beautiful letters are the inspiration for the novel, the seed from which The Last Letter’s characters and their voices grew.
I’ve also written women’s fiction (COMING SOON!) and have written another historical fiction novel (COMING A LITTLE LATER!) set in 1948 in a town not far from Oakmont, PA.
I’m considering revisiting my characters and setting of The Last Letter for a future book, but I hope readers will enjoy the fact I write about varied eras and places and that they will love each book for it’s unique setting and time.
(This is a sponsored post.)
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Christopher Meeks was born in Minnesota, earned degrees from the University of Denver and USC, and has lived in Los Angeles since 1977. He's taught English at Santa Monica College, and creative writing at CalArts, UCLA Extension, Art Center College of Design, and USC. His fiction has appeared often in Rosebud magazine as well as other literary journals, and his books have won several Noble (not Nobel) Awards. His short works have been collected into two volumes, "The Middle-Aged Man and the Sea" and "Months and Seasons," the latter which appeared on the long list for the Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award. He's had three plays produced, and "Who Lives?: A Drama" is published. His focus is now on longer fiction. His first novel is "The Brightest Moon of the Century," and his second, "Love At Absolute Zero."
