{"product_id":"2940151314039","title":"Portico","description":"Splitting the atom stopped WWII but started the Cold War.  Ending years of scarcity and sacrifice began the golden age of plenty and prosperity unprecedented in American history.  In the balance of terror, the twilight war compelled a cornucopia of commerce, catapulting a mass consumption of homespun innovations, like—Holy Smokies!—automobiles, electrical appliances, cigarettes, urban sprawl, rock-n-roll, fast food, television soap operas, plastic, Hollywood, frozen dinners, post-war weddings, baby boom, boredom and unhappiness, anxiety and depression, cults and bizarre psychotherapies, widespread divorce and dysfunctional personal relationships….\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePortico begins with a Doppler effect, in 1945, at the flash point of the Trinity Test, in Alamogordo, New Mexico, and ends near the freezing point, late 21st Century, in Portico.  Unmapped, sequestered in the Southwest desert, Portico is reputed for famous fare at the diner, the Porch of Maidens, and Rainbow Ice Cream®. The Porch of Maidens—gov. codenamed Pond Cabin—mimics majestic ancient architecture and becomes the unintended laboratory for disciples ordained on The Hill, in Los Alamos.  Enthused by the polychrome neon spectaculars above the diner, international scientists and engineers build atomic bombs, feast on fabulous food, relishing Rainbow Ice Cream®. Eventually, Manhattan Project bomb-building secrets become declassified; unlike the recipe for Rainbow Ice Cream®, a Top Secret elixir that ends the Cold War through ice cream diplomacy. The story begins when, out of the blue, a wayward crippled canine wanders into Wally Winks. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFoot loose and fancy free, aided by his adoptive master, automotive mechanic Walter Word, together, they put Portico on the map in the Land of Enchantment, and Wally Winks in the atlas of heartwarming places. The story ends at Portico’s first, Fourth of July Victory Parade when a mutant jackrabbit leaps through a city street drain vent and panic pedestrians.  Two protagonists vying for Best Costume accolades among a prestigious parade of costumed contestants, anticipate the rapacious rabbit’s escape and ensnare it to avert jackrabbitmonaeium!  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWho among these mentioned might these heroes be?  Elle and Philippe, foreign food faultfinders from France; Undercover Secret Agents Dick and George; Mr. Marvelous, riding his albino steed and mentor to nine year-old neophyte trick roper Leroy, riding his blue bicycle; Leroy’s parents, Walter and Gwendolyn Word; Peggy Sue, aka The Ice Cream Bunny tending the Rainbow Ice Cream® pushcart; the Governor of New Mexico; Portico’s famous mariachis’; Doreen the baton twirler; Thelma White and her All Girl Orchestra; Emcee, aka Albert Einstein; Oops!, aka J. Robert Oppenheimer; the Postmaster General of the United Sates; U.S. Postal Bubble Blowers Brigade; Rufus and\/or Barkley; biplane postal pilot Angelic Amy; Edward Hopper, American artist; seven drovers on horseback; Uncle Sam riding run-away braying donkey….Historically, postwar booming economies beget cultural decay eroding values held sacred prewar.  Portico begins after WWII and ends on the second to the last chord.","brand":"Light Switch Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47109959811312,"sku":"2940151314039","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940151314039_p0.jpg?v=1764008600","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940151314039","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}