Evan S. Connell's oeuvre includes the historical work
Son of the Morning Star: Custer and the Little Bighorn and novels such as
Diary of a Rapist,
Deus lo volt!, and the companion pieces
Mr. Bridge and
Mrs. Bridge which were made into the Merchant Ivory film
Mr. and Mrs. Bridge. Of all his work, I particularly appreciate the long poems (also companion pieces)
Points for a Compass Rose and
Notes from a Bottle Found on a Beach at Carmel for their colorful sense of journeying, of being lost at sea, of taking measurement, and for the sustained verse structure. What intrigues me so much about Connell is his vast body of knowledge on his subject matter and his ability to sustain the artifice through which he tells a story.