Novels by Monty Joynes

	"Naked Into the Night" by Monty Joynes In the first novel in the Booker Series, published in 1997, a successful Anglo businessman with grown children walks out of his affluent lifestyle late one night totally naked in a desperate attempt to remake himself as a human being. His adventure takes him cross-country from truck stop to truck stop as a moving van helper to Santa Fe, where he finds shelter and peace among a small tribe of Pueblo Indians. Adopted into the tribe as “Anglo Who Became Chief Old Woman’s Son,” he must then return to the family chaos he left behind in Norfolk to free himself of his past. This novel helped to create a new literary genre, visionary fiction, and it is considered a classic with appeal to everyone on the journey of self-discovery. The odyssey of the story engages all family members, male and female, across three generations, and is both poignant and humorous.

"Lost in Las Vegas"

by Monty Joynes

In the second novel in the Booker Series, published in 1998, the character lost in Las Vegas is a remarkable young Pueblo man, a spiritual prodigy and National Champion Fancy Dancer, who has been corrupted by the glamour of show business. His tribal elders call upon their spiritual brother, an Anglo man who was the principal character in NAKED INTO THE NIGHT, to go to Las Vegas in an attempt to restore the young potential leader to his tribe. The mission seems impossible given the mistrust Indians hold for Anglo do-gooders and wannabes. Anglo must face the animosity of Dancer and the proprietary interests of the two Folies Bergiere showgirls who manipulate him. In the process, both Indian and Anglo must sort out their destinies, which requires that they risk life itself in the Valley of Fire.

"Save the Good Seed"

by Monty Joynes

In the third novel in the Booker Series, published in 1999, a Pueblo baby is adopted and raised in the Anglo world. In middle age, he discovers his ancestry and attempts to reconnect with his tribe. Booker, an Anglo honored by tribal traditionals, plays an important role in restoring the confused man to his culture. Based on thousands of cases of controversial Indian adoptions circa 1945-1976, this book documents the experience and psychology of cultural loss. The narrative provides a vivid literary vision of the stolen birthright of a Native American and his journey to reclaim it. In parallel plots, Booker is visited by his estranged son and daughter, and the Vegas showgirls, Sue and Debbie, become residents of Santa Fe and develop a dancing school with Booker as their surrogate father and houseguest.

	*"Dead Water Rites"*
	*by Monty Joynes*
	In the fourth novel in the Booker Series, published in 2000, a tribal elder of the Pueblo Nation is warned in a vision that the water, their precious life source, is dying. Booker, an honored anglo friend of the elders, seeks a solution to the potential crisis of the tribal council selling its water rights to developers. Praised by Indian leaders and environmentalists, and nominated for the Pulitzer Prize by its publisher, this book deals with the metaphysics of water as much as it addresses the historic use issues. Author and critic George Garrett called it “a sustained poetic meditation on the power and glory of water in the world.” The highly researched nature of this book makes it appropriate for group discussion and classroom use. All of the featured characters in the previous three novels reappear in the plot development of this volume. Plus Booker falls in love!

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last updated: October, 2005

novels by monty joynes