In a house trailer in rural Mississippi, Gary, a married Vietnam veteran, addicted to drugs, haunted by memories of the past, is on the brink of collapse. Just when he thinks the dream of another life is over, the unspeakable happens. He falls in love with a frail, ghostly younger man who reminds him of youth, beauty, and the possibility of a life beyond the prison he has created for himself. A Scarecrow s Bible is about what happens when love occurs at the most unexpected moment. It is the story of how working-class men and women in a small town adapt to changes that somehow seem impossible. It is a novel of hope and transformation that challenges our ideas about diversity and social change, breaking your heart all the way.
"When wounded souls connect, the miracle can be explosive. So it is in this rapturous debut novel..." Seattle Gay News
"He's now crafting a new form of southern lyricism with gay characters and plot lines." -New York Magazine
"A literary masterpiece from a debut author..." Fred Towers, Rainbow Reviews
"An astounding debut." - Kevin Killian
"Martin Hyatt writes like a sad angel." - Abigail Thomas
"A narrative tour-de-force." - Minnie Bruce Pratt
"Martin Hyatt's A Scarecrow's Bible is an exceptional debut novel." American Library Association
"The writing is so skillful it's hard to believe that this is a debut. If this is a gay novel it's unlike any other I've ever read." —Edmund White, author of A Boy's Own Story
WINNER: EDMUND WHITE AWARD FOR DEBUT FICTION
STONEWALL HONOR BOOK- AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION
FINALIST-LAMBDA LITERARY AWARD
FINALIST- FERRO-GRUMLEY AWARD
FINALIST- VIOLET QUILL AWARD