Linda Thorsen BondSaving the Oldest Town in Texas

Linda Bond's extensive research skills and creative use of language have brought to life the true story of one of the early families of Nacogdoches, Texas. When Daisy Sutton met the handsome Ben Wettermark, who was on on a business trip back East, she was immediately impressed. The attraction being mutual, the two started up correspondence. When Ben asked her to travel to Nacogdoches to marry him she agreed, much to the dismay of her parents. True love overcame their protests and she and a respectable woman companion took the train to Texas. She and Ben, a widower with four children, married the day after she arrived and she started her new life with a ready-made family. The Wettermark family was highly regarded, Ben's father having established several banks in the area. Ben chafed under his father's direction and at the age of 21, he was given full responsibility for the bank in his home town. He was determined that his wife and children should have the best, whether it be clothes, toys or furniture and urged his wife to decorate their new mansion with the finestBond does a good job of painting a picture of a man who wanted too much too soon. She uses effectively the technique of going back and forth from modern day to the late 1800s - early 1900s. Using her own mother as a model for the spunky lady who determines that she will rescue the decrepit old mansion, Bond shows the spirit of the people of Nacogdoches who want to keep the history of their city fresh. Appropriately named Peggy, the lady gets support from her daughter and son-in-law to renovate the Wettermark house. She also gets help from the librarian, who is a history buff, in researching the house and the people who built it and lived there. In so doing she uncovers the story of a man who over extended himself and left his family, his bank and his town in the lurch.Telling the true story of how his family dealt with the crisis, how they had to live in poverty as Daisy sold off piece after piece of furniture and the final decision they make when they finally hear from Ben raises the question, "What would the reader do given the choices the family had to make." Linda Bond did a superb job with character, plot and dialogue. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this bit of history and recommend this book highly. I am waiting to see what new adventures Linda Bond will offer to her readers.

I loved this novel that blends historical events with a contemporary story. Very well written and enjoyable read.

I learned so much about Nacogdoches history from Linda’s book. Our book club had this as our January selection and everyone loved it. Linda was gracious enough to even send us discussion questions. Most of us live in Nacogdoches and enjoyed the history lesson and how Linda wove the past and present together. An excellent example of historical fiction.

I enjoyed this story, especially after living in Nacogdoches for 28 yrs. It is a wonderful town full of history, and many well preserved homes. The story was an added delight.

I live in Nacogdoches, Texas. This book kept my interest throughout, while reading this historical novel . It brought an era of time alive, and the beautiful homes described brought to life. I am blessed to see these homes daily.

Although I live in The Oldest Town in Texas, I did not know any of this story. This brought to life two parts of Nacogdoches history: the scandal of 1900 and the current effort to preserve what is left of our history.

I finished listening to the audio version yesterday. I enjoyed the story—the device of moving between narratives in two different time spans was effective and, I believe, added to the enjoyability of the audio version of the book. I really enjoyed learning about a part of Nacogdoches history with which I was unfamiliar. Thanks for telling that historically-based story!

Linda Bond out did herself on writing this book about Nacogdoches. Love the past and future story. Waiting for another good one like this one.