Chapter One
It is one lucky eighty- seven -year- old jackass whose jailer is his confessor. If Las Almas did not have its own jail I would be in the Dona Ana County Detention Center and would have no one to tell the stories to, that I used to tell in the confessional.
Cleophas Galvin, son of Pancho Villa's lieutenant, Manuel Hernandez Galvin, has his right hand resting low on my waist and his left hand in my hand, and we are practicing the dance lesson he has just received from my wife Recita. I am humming "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain," and sometimes singing a part that I remember or the parts of "Always on My Mind" that I mix it up with.
Recita is allowed to visit me here every day because Cleophas, who will marry soon, needs her to come and show him the steps. Though I have been in Jail many times, I am never in for long, so he and I must make the most of our time together.This-this compassionate arrangcment-compassionatc for me, compassionate for Cleophas, and for my wife Recitathis has been the plan of God and of Judge Isidro Merida, nephew of my grade-school teacher Sister Maria Josefa, a terrible angel of our Mesilla valley, who still appears in whirlwinds on the dusty playgrounds of our schools."No," he says."About yourself?" No.
"About me?"
Cleophas says, "They're all about you. You tell stories like a coyote spitting up his own bones, Red. And who can put them together?"
"Like this-like this," I say, and leave less space between our legs and waists. "Intimate. Be Intimate.'' I wipe my leaking nose.
"Okay," he whines. Review:
"...is a wounderful gift of faith to a cynical age.Only a book is smart, tough-minded, funny, beautiful and , yes, humble could burrow so deeply into both the doubting ming and the yearning heart." (-- Richard Russo, author of Straight Man)
Review:
"Oftenhilarious...charming, unpretentious, deep, poetic, life-filled.A joy...McIlvoy's novel is lyric and episoddic...Life, tears, comedy, and love pour out of it at all points." (-- Kirkus Reviews)
Review:
"Kevin McIlvoy is a writer's writer without apology, and bless himfor that. But he also has a tough heart and an honest mind,and, most important, a decent heart."(-- Rick DeMarinis, author of The Year of the Zinc Penny)
Review:
"Deeply satisfying... a memorable, intelligently romantic story...McIlvoy has beautifully rendered the soft, Spanish-inflectedrhythms of English as it is spoken on the border,and Red is the classic picaresque rascal."(-- Publisbers Weekly )
Synopsis:
Kevin McIlvoy's
Hyssop is a remarkable novel filled with kindness, truth, and magic--a story that celebrates friendship and love while exploring the complexities of a simple faith that enriches materially impoverished lives. It is a gorgeous patchwork of memory lovingly sewn together by Red Greetaltruistic petty thief and guileless grifter-who has spent many days of his eighty-seven years behind bars in Las Almas, New Mexico. Twice married-the second time, while in jail, to his lifelong love Recita Holguin-Red has sampled pleasures available only to those capable of embracing life and its temptations without shame or fear. But his sins have been as memorable as his adventures-transgressions he shares freely with Bishop Francisco Velasco, Red's lifelong best friend and confessor, and his one-time rival for the affections of his first wife, Cecilia. In telling how he has loved and been loved, in confessing how he has sinned and inspired others to sin, Red Greet seeks hyssop, the substance that might wash his soul clean.
Synopsis:
Kevin McIlvoy's
Hyssopis a remarkable novel filled with kindness, truth, and magic--a story that celebrates friendship and love while exploring the complexities of a simple faith that enriches materially impoverished lives. It is a gorgeous patchwork of memory lovingly sewn together by Red Greetaltruistic petty thief and guileless grifter-who has spent many days of his eighty-seven years behind bars in Las Almas, New Mexico. Twice married-the second time, while in jail, to his lifelong love Recita Holguin-Red has sampled pleasures available only to those capable of embracing life and its temptations without shame or fear. But his sins have been as memorable as his adventures-transgressions he shares freely with Bishop Francisco Velasco, Red's lifelong best friend and confessor, and his one-time rival for the affections of his first wife, Cecilia. In telling how he has loved and been loved, in confessing how he has sinned and inspired others to sin, Red Greet seeks hyssop, the substance that might wash his soul clean.
About the Author
Kevin McIlvoy is the author of the novels A Waltz, The Fifth Station, and Little Peg.He teaches at New Mexico State University and Warren Wilson College.
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