Mover of Bones

In one hand, Jesse Breedlove holds a bottle of Cuervo Gold - or what's left of it - in the other, the shovel with which he has just unearthed the bones of a small girl buried in the cellar of a Catholic church in Omaha, Nebraska. So begins Breedlove's odyssey across the literal and mythical landscapes of America, bearing the finely articulated body he has uncovered, the bones that would neither rest nor, in their restless eloquence, let him remain silent. Through the heart of the United States, this mover of bones encounters people who live on the margins, geographically and emotionally, and who find that his presence and his plight summon their voices. Rumors surface and reports multiply as the lonely and the addicted, the isolated and the damned, the pure of heart and the holy sane speak. From the dark and distant edges of society, they bear witness - sometimes directly, sometimes obliquely - to what the mover of bones and his burden mean. Defiler, redeemer, sinner, or saint - Breedlove is the stuff myths are made of, and "The Mover of Bones", the first of a planned trilogy of novels by the remarkably gifted Robert Vivian, evokes a collective dream of the heartland. Robert Vivian's stories, poems, and essays have appeared in numerous publications, and his plays have been produced in New York City. He is the author of the award-winning book "Cold Snap as Yearning" (available in a Bison Books edition) and teaches English and creative writing at Alma College in Michigan.