Sleeping Where I Fall: A Chronicle [Illustrated] (Hardcover)

What few people know is that Peter has always thought of himself as a writer first and foremost since his college days pursuing a master's degree in creative writing. Now with the release of this book, he further fulfills a dream by entering the literary world as a gifted writer, evidenced by the reviews of Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, Omnibus, San Francisco Chronicle and many more.

His story is told with great humor, candor and self-critical analysis. Peter is not afraid to reveal himself giving accounts of both his generosity of spirit and his character flaws. Ironically, the very first chapter starts out with "While still an undergraduate at Grinnell College, I had fallen in love with Jessie Benton, a captivating woman I met one summer on Martha's Vineyard." This passage alone is a premonition to his perpetual attraction to women, a beguiling enchantment which could culminate in euphoric days and nights but, also, in broken relationships often bringing hurtful and destructive consequences. There's poetry in his descriptions of nature as witnessed in some of his music - "all the splendors of creation set the marrow trembling! in my bones." (from "Rainbow Woman") His prose has lyrical clarity dotted with clever metaphors and similes that bring his images to life and convey a myriad of experiences and feelings from peyote and heroin highs and camaraderie in communal living to his bitter conflicts with both the mother of his daughter and his overbearing father.

"Sleeping Where I Fall" is an extremely personal account of his search for truth, understanding and wisdom. Though he rode with the Hell's Angels and lived a life of dangerous drugs, you will come away still sensing an innocence about Coyote, a man who wanted to dream the future because, as with all youthful idealism, he believed there was something more to be gained in this world other than materialism.

His accounts of this pursuit of absolute freedom are often seductive, always fascinating. He writes objectively, careful not to romanticize or glorify the times. He's very frank, darn-right earthy as in his example of pearls of wisdom. He shares tales of living with drug-crazed friends whose demons sometimes propelled them to an early death. One comes away with the feeling of having spent time at Red House, Black Bear Ranch or Olema, becoming intimately acquainted with a whole host of colorful characters, such as Moose, Natural Suzanne, Ron Thelin, Sweet William, Nichole, Carla, Rolling Thunder, Chocolate George, as well as their inventive modes of transportation like Dr. Knucklefunky.

There is as much sadness as there is laughter, but it's a book you'll find hard to put down. It's not only entertaining, but a testament to the human spirit and the dreams of that generation, and a tribute to the groundwork it laid for the future. As a masterful storyteller, Peter succeeds in bringing more honest illumination to the Sixties, an historic period in our country that has not always been defined or treated fairly. If any fil! m critic hasn't yet understood the charisma, the complex persona and intelligence that Coyote brings to his screen roles, they should definitely read this book. END

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