Hidden in the seemingly impenetrable blackberry vines were the remnants of the famous Allan Wattson, farm. Upon discovery of the ten-acre blackberry patch, Grady and his close allies form The Secret Bramble Society. Their first tunnel through the deep swirling vines leads to an old school bus which they immediately turn into their H.Q. From there, our secret society sets out to explore the rest of the huge plot of brambles, uncovering many intriguing structures and vehicles, including a giant tree house. While spending much of their free time tunneling through uncharted blackberry vines, the Secret Bramble Society is faced with a problem at school: Bullies. It's war! Our friends organize and confront this situation head on, all the while making many interesting discoveries about the farm, buried in blackberry vines, and its absent and mysterious owner, the world-renowned author, Allan Watson. Set in Santa Clara, Oregon, a suburb of Eugene, and inspired by an actual acreage that had been overgrown by blackberries, this novel was first envisioned by John when he lived in the area. When the acreage was being prepared for development, there was uncovered a multitude of vehicles, machinery, barns, sheds, houses and all manner of farm implements. As a boy growing up in Oregon John was very familiar with the tenacity and abundance of wild blackberries and love exploring first in Portland and later moving his young family to Eugene. Another inspiration that led to The Brambles was a family friendly movie called The Buttercream Gang. This was where the idea for confronting bullies with whistles first started.
