title: Out There: a novel
author:  Sarah Stark 
description: &#34;In this lyrical, evocative novel, Stark summons the possibility of salvation in tragedy. Iraq war veteran Jefferson Long Soldier returns home with a wounded soul and a copy of Gabriel Garca Mrquez's novel One Hundred Years of Solitude, which he carried with him through combat and credits for saving his life. But when neither family nor a psychologist can help ease his transition to civilian life, Jefferson journeys by motorbike across Mexico in search of salvation and the reclusive Garca Mrquez. A tribute to magical realism and the transforming power of fiction, Stark's novel juxtaposes violence and gentleness and merges logic with sensuous atmosphere to question the boundaries of reality. Jefferson's struggle for peace reveals an existence as fluid and magical as a dream but with consequences.&#34; --<b><i>-Publishers Weekly (starred review)</i></b><br /><br />How would Jefferson Long Soldier, the returning Iraq War veteran and central character of Sarah Stark's novel <i>Out There</i> (Leaf Storm Press), have taken last week's news of the passing of Gabriel Garca Mrquez? Mrquez is Long Soldier's savior and the object of his motorcycle pilgrimage from Santa Fe to Mexico City. He carries Mrquez's novel <i>One Hundred Years of Solitude</i> with him wherever he goes and believes every single word in it has saved his life.... What follows is a glowing road-trip of magical realism. Stark shows love for the revered writer in both knowledge of his work and reflection of his style. --<b><i>-(Bill Kohlhaase) Santa Fe New Mexican</i></b>
zlib_text: **PRAISE FOR THE NOVELS OF SARAH HEALY**
  
   _House of Wonder_
  
  “With keen insight and rare emotional truth, Sarah Healy hits every mark with
  _House of Wonder_. It’s funny, sad, hopeful, and heartbreaking and filled with
  characters that stick with you and make you care. If you’ve ever known an
  outsider or an oddball—or been one—this is a novel for you.”
  
  —Augusten Burroughs, _New York Times_ bestselling author of _Running with
  Scissors_ and _Sellevision_
  
  “Sarah Healy’s _House of Wonder_ is an emotionally gripping tale of love,
  loss, and the universal convolutions of family. She paints her characters into
  life until you feel as if you’ve known them forever. I savored every delicious
  subtlety.”
  
  —Emily Liebert, author of _You Knew Me When_ and _When We Fall_
  
  “ _House of Wonder_ shows how family ties tend to worm their way from matters
  of obligation to matters of the heart, quickly and completely. The delicious
  dips into family history and the complex relationships in this book are as
  lov