His father was crushed to death by a hippo at the Rose Bowl Parade. His mother presides over a vast evangelical empire. Bud Salem's life has never been dull, but its about to take a truly wild turn. While hitch-hiking across the desert in search of his own American dream, Bud runs into a frenetic, redheaded Detroit housewife pitching oranges in the Mojave. Sylvia Cushman is twice his age and an Emily Dickinson fanatic. Together they travel east through the heart of America, experiencing everything from tainted hallucinatory cacti in Texas to gunplay with Iranian terrorists in Coney Island and hard-driving canines in the Motor City. David Bowman spins out this freewheeling tale with the sharp-edged wit and brilliantly chaotic style of a genuinely modern voice.
Editorial Reviews
"You feel like you're on a bizarre ride at some wild amusement park." --Sassy
"Incandescent." --The New Yorker
"Raymond Chandler merges with Gabriel Garcia Marquez." --The New York Times Book Review
About the Author
David Bowman was born in Racine, Wisconsin, but now lives in New York City. This, his first novel, was written in Montauk. He is currently writing a biography of Paul Cain (1902-1966), an enigmatic contemporary Hammett who lived and died in Hollywood.
