The Parrot Trainer - Hardcover

Wolfe, Swain

3.97

36 ratings by Goodreads

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0312310919 ISBN 13: 9780312310912

Publisher: St. Martin's Press, 2003

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At the center of this beguiling novel of the Southwest is an odd romantic triangle—an archaeologist, a former pot thief and art dealer, and a sassy spirit.

Jack, who had been a prominent art dealer and collector, finds a sketch of a parrot trainer from an ancient, Indian Mimbres bowl along with a map to a cliff dwelling, at the scene of a fatal accident. He is fascinated by the image of a parrot trainer and her haunting gesture. Obsessed, he finds the bowl and is stung by something venomous as he descends the cliff. He manages to drive home in spite of his violent reaction to the venom. There, to his confusion, Willow, the Parrot Trainer, comes alive and begs him to free her spirit from the bowl. Jack is certain she is an hallucination, a product of his own mind.

Lucy, an archaeologist from the east, is in New Mexico to give a speech at a convention when she receives a call from Philip, a renowned archaeologist, her mentor and lover. Philip has discovered that a secret DNA test at Berkeley has identified a caucasoidal specimen from a 15,000-year-old body found in a glacier in Alaska and that the sample was sent by a Jack Miller in Silverado. This significant find could revive his waning celebrity. Philip asks Lucy to find Miller and get him to reveal the location of the man in the glacier.

After Lucy’s speech, she has a run-in with Henri, a pixieish deconstructionist, who is the subject of a documentary by edgy Anita and her wildman/cameraman Billy. When Anita and Billy learn of Lucy’s plan to go to Silverado, they offer to take her so they can film the fireworks between Lucy and Henri. The drive from Albuquerque to Silverado turns into an antic—and sometimes violent—road trip, as they clash with each other and provoke the locals.

Tweaking knee-jerk political correctness and academia, Swain Wolfe provides a rich archaeological and anthropological background that deals with some of the fields’ most controversial issues. Witty, sexy, and packed with local color, this is a novel of ideas with the additional appeal of enchanting magic realism, high adventure, and a tender love story.

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From the Inside Flap:

"With repartee worthy of Oscar Wilde, and magical invention reminiscent of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Swain Wolfe's The Parrot Trainer is a delightful, insightful comedy of archaeological manners. Wolfe's luminous intelligence will make the reader believe that living spirits inhabit clay and that jocular ghosts can sometimes pull our strings. All of which is the long way of saying that The Parrot Trainer is entertainment of the highest order."
-Rick DeMarinis, author of Borrowed Hearts

"The Parrot Trainer is a fascinating, splendid novel. Wolfe really has a deep feeling for the Southwest and its people, and he knows how to tell an engrossing tale."
-Douglas Preston, author of Cities of Gold

"Swain Wolfe has created nothing less than a new genre: the surreal Southwestern archaeological thriller. A rousing read that captures the Byzantine competitiveness of archaeologists."
-Alex Shoumatoff, author of Legends of the American Desert: Sojourns in the Greater Southwest

"A witty send-up...a Southwestern comedy of errors...Subtle, sophisticated fun..."
-Kirkus Reviews

"Transforms accurate archaeology into a wry fantasy interweaving the present and the ancient past."
-Steven LeBlanc, archaeologist and author of The Mimbres People

"An inventive blend of magical realism and picaresque thriller... with big ideas about culture, art, academia, love and corruption."
-Seattle Times

"A breezy look at the highly competitive business of trafficking in treasures... complete with wisecracks and zany characters."
-Denver Post

"Wit and wordplay... hope in the redeeming power of love... Wolfe's writing is clear, passionate, almost lyrical."
-The New Mexican (Santa Fe)

0"A surprisingly sweet narrative both real and surreal that places the reader vividly in the Southwest."
-Library Journal

About the Author:

A former documentary filmmaker, Swain Wolfe is the author of The Woman Who Lives in the Earth and The Lake Dreams the Sky. He lives in Missoula, Montana.

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