Terpischore Amidst the Forty Hills

Terpsichore Amidst the Forty Hills is a twofold historical novel combining fiction with nonfiction. Terpsichore symbolizes the Grecian mythical goddess of Dance. Forty hills represents hilly San Francisco where many of the scenes occur. The novel consists of eight books; each book contains a complete and authentic history of a traditional social dance: European, American, and Latin-American. Erwin Gerald Swett’s presentation of the social dance histories is unparalleled. Nevertheless, it would be a mistake as well as misleading to classify Terpsichore Amidst the Forty Hills as a dance book. By an innovative format the histories were spun into a fictitious story, like threads woven into a whole cloth. The themes vary, war and peace…satire and sex…and elements of crime. the dance histories are intricate vehicles carrying the main character, Vincent Armstrong, on the road of life. There are roadblocks - such as war and the after-effects- which delay his reaching his destination, his ambition to become a criminal attorney. Underlying the themes is Vincent Armstrong’s psychological struggle within himself going back to his boyhood days. He looks for mental tranquility in the world of social dance where he hopes to find passionate women with whom he can pleasingly master the art of Terpsichore that he always loved.