Confidence of the Heart
by David Schweidel
In Confidence of the Heart, David Schweidel's engrossing first
novel, friendship and politics intersect to create profound changes in
both mind and heart. Impulsive, slightly manic anthropologist Patrick
McGuffin (better known as Spoon) convinces his best friend, the quiet,
dreamy Armando, to travel to Guatemala to be best man at Spoon's
impending marriage into a prominent Guatemalan family. Spoon, who has
always had the ability to jolt Armando out of his paralyzing passivity,
convinces Armando to make the trip by telling him that time is running
out, that he must change his life if he is to have one.
David Schweidel
Author's Bio:David Schweidel grew up in El Paso, Texas, three miles from the Mexican
border. He remembers feeling like an anthropologist long before he knew
what an anthropologist was. After studying anthropology at Stanford,
UCLA, and the University of California, Berkeley, he received a Master
of Fine Arts in creative writing from the University of Arizona.
Currently, he lives in Berkeley with his wife Linda and works at the
University of California.
Awards:Milkweed National Fiction Prize: 1995
New York Public Library's “Books for the Teen Age” Quotes:“Confidence of the Heart joins a select few novels
which probe the Latin American reality. This North American perspective
of our brothers and sisters to the south is becoming more and more
important. I recommend this fast-paced 'on the road' story not only as
an adventure tale, but because it reveals a slice of grim reality south
of the border."—Milkweed National Fiction Prize judge and novelist
Rudolfo Anaya
“Confidence of the Heart provides a powerful illustration of the uncharted boundaries of friendship.”—Publishers Weekly
"It
travels the treacherous path of the political novel without dodging the
difficult questions, yet also without slipping into propaganda. . . .
Both a powerful political statement and a brilliant work of art."— Robert Boswell
"David
Schweidel knows how to lead us by our purely escapist selves through
the intrigues of romance and mystery and suspense into our more exalted
contemplative moral selves."—Antonya Nelson
"Confidence of the Heart has a compelling plot, a fascinating
setting, and sympathetic characters, all rendered in an inviting,
readable prose."—Larry Watson, author of Montana 1948, winner of the 1993 Milkweed National Fiction Prize
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