Interview with David J. Mather,
Author of One for the Road
David served in the Peace Corps in Chile from 1968 to 1970, and his experiences there provided the background for this novel. After the Peace Corps he started a successful specialty lumber business that sold rare domestic woods nationwide. He has traveled extensively, especially throughout Latin America. He and his wife split their time between New Hampshire and Florida’s gulf coast. One for the Road is his first novel.
MJT: David, congratulations on the publication of your first novel. What kind of research did you do, or did you rely on your memories for writing the novel?
DJM: I had known for years that someday I would try to write a book based on my experiences as a Peace Corps volunteer in southern Chile, and that there was no way I could do it well from memory alone. Consequently, I returned to my site in the foothills of the Andes with my wife in 1992. It hadn’t changed much, other than there were now a lot of tall pine trees, and I took a lot of pictures. We stayed with ‘my family’ in my old room, although this time I slept on a bed, not sheepskins. We rode many familiar trails on horseback, visiting several families where I talked over old times and old stories. In the evenings, I would make careful notes of the various conversations. I started writing One For The Road in 2007, and soon realized I needed even more info. We returned again in 2008… For historic information, I referred to John L. Rector’s The History of Chile. For various info about Peru, Bolivia, and other parts of Chile, I referred to my well-thumbed 1969 edition of The South American Handbook, and also the Lonely Planet’s 2006 Chile y la isla de Pascua. Finally, I used the web for some of the anecdotal information.
MJT: What was your goal in writing the book?
DJM: I had three goals. The first was to create a love story of impact. The second was to present a clear picture of what life was like in the Chilean campo forty-five years ago. And thirdly, the book was meant to be a tribute to the people of Cufeo who opened their hearts and homes to me for the two years I lived and worked there. I believe that I accomplished all three.
MJT: How long did it take you to write One for the Road?
DJM: Five years.
MJT: How has the locale of your novel changed since 1970?
DJM: As I said, when we first returned it hadn’t changed that much other than the pine trees everywhere. However, when we returned again in 2008, the community of scattered farms where I lived and worked was, sadly, gone. Most of the farms (including ‘my family’s’) and one-room schoolhouses had been torn down, replaced by pine. It was disconcerting because I knew almost all the trails—oxen, horse, foot—but now it was impossible to get my bearings. What was worse, the majority of campesinos couldn’t eke out a living while waiting for the pine to mature. They sold out, pennies on the dollar, to large timber companies. It was the ‘fat cat’ who benefitted from all their hard work. You can imagine how that made me feel.
MJT: I assume when you went to Chile in 1968 it really was for the purpose of reforestation. It would take 25 years for the trees to mature. Did you ever find out if the forests were restored or did premature harvesting occur?
DJM: Originally, the area had been virgin hardwood forest; we were reforesting with primarily Monterey pine. Consequently, the forest would never truly be restored. Premature harvesting was not an issue. The issue, I feel, was that very few of the people who busted their butts to plant the trees benefitted. However, ‘my family’ did hold out long enough to cash in with a big sale of their pine, and they bought a little house and a rental unit for their old age in a nearby town.
MJT: How has the Peace Corps influenced your life?
DJM: The influence the Peace Corps had on my life, in a word, was huge. I had a privileged upbringing—private boarding school, good college, I never wanted for a thing. However, living in those hills of southern Chile in an impoverished community, I soon realized that there was so much ‘stuff’ back in the States that we did not need. Indeed, it complicated our lives. When I returned to the States, I cloned my existence in Chile. I bought a small piece of land in the woods of New Hampshire over a mile off-grid, cleared the land, built a cabin, had an outhouse, and lived there year-round for over thirty-five years. Recently, my wife and I became residents of Florida, but we still return to the cabin for summers and part of fall. Also, being in the Peace Corps instilled a confidence in the sense that I felt that if I could learn a language and depend pretty much entirely on myself in a lawless area of a foreign land, other things in life would be a ‘piece of cake.’ I have been fending for myself and self-employed for almost my entire adult life. And I have absolutely no regrets on the path I chose. Finally, I am a very big fan of the Peace Corps and promote it whenever I can.
MJT: Was Maria Elena a real-life person?
DJM: Maria Elena is fictional, although she is real enough in my mind that my wife (jokingly) has been jealous of her for five years. Maria Elena is absolutely a 10. One thing, though, that I would like to say: One For The Road is not a ‘romance novel.’ I find that term somewhat shallow for my book; ‘romance novels’ are a genre and ‘a dime a dozen.’ Rather, I would like to think that Tomas’s and Maria Elena’s relationship is much deeper—it is a love story. As one review put it, “If you don’t laugh or cry when you read this, you must be made of stone.”
MJT: David, can you tell our readers where to find your novel and would you share what readers will find of interest if they visit your website?
DJM: My book is available in a limited number of independent bookstores, but is easily purchased through Amazon. It is also available on most e-books like Kindle and Nook. For info about ordering the book, about the book, author, etc., please visit the book’s website: www.onefortheroad-mather.com. I think that the site will very much interest people because of, if for no other reason, the pictures of the campo and people of Chile. Some are pictures I took 45 years ago, others are from the two return trips. There is also a YouTube interview on the site which I did for a radio station in Ocala, Florida, a few weeks ago.
It was a great story and a wonderful read. Couldn’t put the book down once I started, and savored every page.