In his memoir, Return to the Water, "everyman" John Stephens weaves a tapestry of his life experience-of a childhood filled with sorrow and disappointment yet charged with clear and thoughtful memory that informs his adult life; a romantic and rich love story of a lasting and compelling marriage; a travelogue of joy and adventure swirling with a growing and marvelous family of four children, exotic trips, pets, a life well-lived; the revelation of a family secret-as the heartbreaking thread pulling the story together is the devastating death of his beloved first son. We are privileged to get to know this man and so when we were there, present when he hears the news of his son"s death, we die a little, too, and are moved to that holy place in hearts where all compelling memoirs move us.