Lost in Sausalito

By Louis W. Hirschmann

Jeff Vetch leaves Los Angeles with nothing but a few suitcases, a faded career, and a small silver-haired schnauzer named Mr. Chips. Once a screenwriter with promise, he retreats north to Sausalito, where fog, art, and quiet mornings seem to promise renewal. There, on the bayside hills and caf patios of Marin, he crosses paths with Jimmy-a kindred spirit from his Hollywood years whose humor and openness rekindle something Jeff thought was gone for good. Their friendship, tender and complicated, becomes the quiet pulse of Lost in Sausalito: a meditation on connection, art, and the fragile grace of beginning again. Through chance encounters, introspection, and the steadfast presence of Mr. Chips, Jeff begins to rediscover what ambition and time had nearly erased-joy.

The story continues in Found in Chicago, beginning as Jeff flies home with Mr. Chips to attend his cousin Taffy's funeral. Among the family he left behind-siblings, cousins, and a mother whose elegance conceals regret-Jeff finds that history is as alive as memory. Old wounds reopen: inheritance, estrangement, the uneven mathematics of privilege and affection. What begins as obligation becomes a reckoning, and then, unexpectedly, forgiveness. Through funerals, shiva, and late-night talks by Lake Michigan, Jeff learns that apologies can be their own form of grace and that reconciliation, though fragile, can outlast the noise of resentment.

Together, the two novels trace a single arc of departure and return-from the Pacific's fog to the Midwest's wind-a reflection on family, friendship, and the quiet courage of emotional honesty. By its end, Jeff and Mr. Chips have not solved life's puzzles, but they have learned to travel lightly, to listen closely, and to call both coasts home.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0FYDQ4P5T
• ISBN13: 9798272213853
• Release Date: October 2025
• Publisher: Independently Published
• Length: 182 Pages
• Weight: 0.41 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.0" x 8.0"