Before there was Erin Brockavich, before there was "Dark Waters", In 1988 there was "The Brook". Based on actual events that happened in a small New Jersey town, "The Brook" is a compelling novel that tells its story. Harry Bonner is the new mayor of Comptons Pond, a small suburban town where he goes about his days officiating weddings and attempting to solve post-election issues. But one evening after curiosity leads him to open a locked file cabinet in his office, Harry has no idea that what he finds inside will forever change the lives of the people in his community, his own family included. After a paper falls out of a binder inside the file cabinet, Harry soon discovers that it is a proposal to clean up toxic waste in his town, specifically at Smithfield Powder Works. With assistance from his wife, a seasoned environmental investigator, a borough attorney, and several environmental activists, Harry begins what quickly becomes a perilous investigation that he hopes will help build a case against a company with executives determined to do whatever it takes to cover up their illegal activities, even as more citizens in Comptons Pond become gravely ill. The Brook is the compelling story of a small town mayor and his crew of experts as they embark on a race against time to save their town and its people from the tragic effects of corporate greed. "The Brook" was a finalist in the National Indie Excellence Awards and received Honorable mention in the Green Book Festival Awards.