With this atmospheric collection of stories, join David Rozgonyi on an unforgettable journey through primitive global landscapes and inside the heads and hearts of those who populate them. Written on and off the road over a period of several years, and drawing upon a lifetime of wanderlust, these tales are rich with adventure, hope, and the discovery of the unexpected.
Professional Reviews
Bookslut July 2006
From the first page, David Rozgonyi casts the line, hooks his readers, and reels them in . . . flinging them onto the shores of new worlds where the romantic, the tragic, and the potential for bliss mingle with hard life lessons some must learn over and over again. Goat Trees is a rare patchwork of many different lives. It is about the power of human contact, of touch, of bonding and acceptance. Never have knowledge and art been so craftily distributed in a series of travel stories. The author expertly melds fantasy and reality, research and fiction, all the while bringing the reader into a world so blessedly real that you find yourself wanting to look each character in the eye, shake their hand, kiss each one’s various external hurts and internal wounds.
Goat Trees is a compelling, action-filled, reflective fairy tale book for grown-ups. Heartbreak and triumph are abundant and experienced vividly. Rozgonyi dives into worlds the average tourist would never get to see, all the while gripping tight to the emotional ghosts the characters never get to keep.
Midwest Book Review June 2006
Why will Goat Trees spark an interest where no other travel book will make the cut? It provides a very lively survey of the best of Rozgonyi's many years of travel in undeveloped nations. His stories are diverse, exciting, and best of all—culturally revealing and fun, making Goat Trees a unique “must” to any travel reader.
KIRKUS
An offbeat collection of stories about travelers flung to the farthest corners of the earth. The author grounds the characters in situations that would be nightmares for the average vacationer, and often ends the story with an unexpected moment of beauty. . . . The author’s exploration of cultural detail is fascinating, and he places his characters in unusual, and extraordinarily interesting, scenarios. In particular, he deftly portrays how travel, especially to places so different from Western culture, affects emotional responses, for better or for worse. A thought-provoking collection that takes the concept of travel to the extreme.
'Coruscated Confabulations' is a collection of stories and experiences, most of which took place in prior decades. They are taken from or based upon real events, with a certain admixture of fictional embellishments.
A teenage boy struggling with the coming-of-age issues of sexuality, religion, and peer approval is overwhelmed, but soldiers on. After several years, he comes to understand the family forces that have left him so deeply troubled, and the process of
As deafness, illness, and demonic forces close in around him, Ludwig van Beethoven must summon his faith and genius to complete the Missa Solemnis—a sacred masterpiece he believes could bring divine light into a darkening world.
