Jack Treglia suffers from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. An unfortunate result of two tours of duty in Vietnam. In an effort to forget, the ex-Marine keeps his Bronze Star tucked away in his underwear drawer---well, he did before the tornado. After one of his Vietnam War flashbacks---the one when he can't save a small child from enemy fire---he wakes up in a hospital, blind and suffering from partial amnesia. He remembers his wife and children. He just can't remember what happened to them. Jack befriends a nurse who resembles his wife. Together they try to discover what happened to his family. She helps him remember things, bizarre things, including the massive Coronary Embolism that killed him. That's right, dead. But that won't stop him from finding his family. And yet the revelation of his death is nothing compared to what he learns about his nurse.
About the Author: John Agostino is an American Novelist born in Brooklyn, New York. As the son of Italian immigrants, he effortlessly translates this robust culture and uses it as a rich, but subtle backdrop for his novel, Distant Relatives. John's tenth grade English teacher, Ms. Carmichael, spotted him as a true writer when she read his Thanksgiving essay written from the turkey's perspective. He waited many years before heeding her advice to make writing a profession, but his perspective is still both haunting and hilarious. Reality dominated the years between those early works and today. According to John, it's been a good reality---one not completely dissimilar from that of the loving and bewildered protagonist of Distant Relatives. John and his wife are the proud parents of four children. His reality is fine; however, his passion involves escaping reality. This is what makes John an effective fiction writer. Readers grab his stories and hang on, much in the way we all navigate life at times. In addition to Distant Relatives, John has outlined a sequel that answers even more of our curiosities about Heaven and Earth---and follows the adventures of the characters introduced in the original story. John also has written a historical thriller, and researched and outlined three additional novels. John says his qualifications for the writing profession are the ingredients of a happy life, an overactive imagination, and a willingness to work hard. Mostly though, he loves to write.