cover image THE POET OF TOLSTOY PARK

THE POET OF TOLSTOY PARK

Sonny Brewer, . . Ballantine, $21.95 (272pp) ISBN 978-0-345-47631-9

A dying man's decision to move from Idaho to Alabama becomes a quixotic spiritual journey in Brewer's ruminative, idiosyncratic first novel, based on a true story. In 1925, widowed Henry Stuart learns that he has tuberculosis and will probably be dead within a year. Stuart's initial reaction is optimistic resignation, as he regards his illness as a final philosophical journey of reconciliation, one that sends him back through the writings of his beloved Tolstoy and other literary and spiritual figures to find solace and comfort. Despite the protests of his two sons and his best friend, he decides to move to the progressive town of Fairhope, Ala. There, he begins to build a round, domed cottage where he seeks to "learn in solitude how to save myself" and earns himself the sobriquet "the poet of Tolstoy Park." The plot, such as it is, runs out of steam when Brewer makes an ill-advised decision to jump forward in time in the last chapters, but the heady blend of literary and philosophical references and some fine character writing make this a noteworthy debut. Agent, Amy Rennert. (Mar.)

Forecast: Book world support for Brewer—who owns Over the Transom Bookshop in Fairhope, Ala., and is the editor of the annual anthology of Southern writing, Stories from the Blue Moon Café—will be strong, as evidenced by blurbs from Pat Conroy, Robert Morgan, Rick Bragg and Winston Groom. Six-city author tour.