One young man’s escape from religious extremism propels him into a national firestorm in The Prophet of Central Park literary fiction by P C Burhenne: Book Tour Guest Post and Author Q&A

 The Prophet of Central Park, a novel by P C Burhenne, explores faith, identity, and public responsibility through the journey of Caleb Ellison, a young man whose quiet act of resistance places him in the middle of a volatile national debate. As Caleb adjusts to life in New York City and uncovers long-buried family secrets, his encounter with a street preacher named Tawana sets him on a new spiritual path.

The author, P C Burhenne, is a Xavier University graduate and lifelong writer. His experience in art dealing, publishing, and hands-on labor has given him a multifaceted lens through which to view the modern world—one that informs the emotional and philosophical depth of his work. For more, visit https://pcburhenne.com.

Excerpt:

Alone and in groups people begin climbing over the barrier for a closer look.  Most of the shoppers congregate about the guitarist so that Caleb suspects they are fans waiting for her performance.  Still a young couple, dark-skinned and with Caribbean accents, inquire what Homesick’s price is.

Sidney takes Caleb aside.  “You’re not going to get what your labor’s worth.  You’re a no-name.  So what are you willing to settle for?”  Faced with the reality of letting go, Caleb finds himself speechless.  “How about a hundred?”

“No way!”

“One twenty-five?”

“One fifty.  And even that much makes me sick to my stomach.”

“That much, you might not have to worry about getting sick, but okay, I’ll try.”

Sidney goes back to the couple and Caleb removes the last totem from his box.  Tawana catches his eye.  “Not easy saying goodbye to your children.”

“It’s not ‘goodbye’ yet.”

“I think it is.”

When he swings about, the boyfriend or husband is handing over the money while his girl searches the sculpture asking, “Can he sign it for us?”  All grins as he gives Caleb the proceeds, Sidney repeats, “Can you sign it?”

Caleb holds out his hands to the buyers in apology.  “I would if I had something to write with.”

“Did you two put any thought into this?” the guitarist asks in exasperation and takes a felt tip marker from her case.  As Caleb writes his name on the base, a spark pushes back against the pang of loss—the fact that someone thinks enough to pay for his work.  Tawana tells him to keep the marker.

A few minutes later Rolando shows up toting his son on his shoulders.  The boy’s face is rounder than the father’s but the resemblance is clear in the shape of the dark eyes and finely-drawn winglike lips.  “Not bad, C.  Already got a crowd,” Rolando says, lifting his son over the benches.

“What flavor ice cream did you get, Reynaud?” Caleb asks Rolando’s boy, kneeling so he’s at the other’s level.

“Strawberry.”

“What?” Tawana says behind him.  “There’s another strawberry fan here.”  The question startles Reynaud so that he looks up to his dad.  Rolando smiles to reassure the boy.  The woman kneels beside Caleb.  “I thought I was the only one.”

Reynaud’s grin shows the gaps where baby teeth have made way for their erupting replacements.  “It’s the best.”

She laughs and Caleb stands to introduce everyone.  Rolando shakes hands then turns back to the figures.  “These are amazing, Caleb.  I knew how you talked about them, they were special but, well, they’re really special.”

Flush at the praise, Caleb can only manage, “Thanks.”  His roommate saves him having to say more with another piece to sign.  A glaze of wonder has settled over Sidney’s exultant expression.  He whispers, “I may up the price.”

When Caleb turns back, Rolando is watching Tawana with a quizzical pout, his balled right hand with index finger up suspended at chest height.  On the grass she directs Reynaud to carefully remove from the last container a sculpture bristling a spiral staircase of dowels.  As Caleb is about to say, Reynaud’s fine doing that, Rolando’s eyes go wide as does his mouth.  He leads Caleb by the arm a few steps apart.

“How the hell do you know the Prophet?”

“Who?” Caleb says looking back.  The woman continues to attend to the boy but she glances toward them and a wistful twitch to her lips slows the smile she gives Caleb.

“That’s what people call her.  Online.  Caleb, she is a big deal.”

“What, as a singer?”  Caleb remembers how she explained herself.  “Or a performance video artist?”

“Eh, no.  Her followers take the videos, I think.  And they call her the Prophet.  As far as I know, she just calls herself Tawana.”

“But she’s a musician, right?”

“No.  I mean, yeah, she sings.” Rolando chuckles at his struggles.  “Look, she is her own distinct thing.  She sings, yes, but she performs her own songs and they’re like sermons.”

“Sermons!” Caleb barks back louder.

Rolando laughs at the confusion.  “Look, you’ll find out for yourself.  Find out if you love her or hate her.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means people are either believers or they think, well, that she’s the Devil’s or something.”

Guest Post:

A story told to me by a good friend suggested the William Ellison thread in The Prophet of Central Park. This man is one of the few true experts on Chinese porcelain and bronzes in the West. I say ”true” because he regularly spots reproductions being offered as antiques in major, presumably vetted Asian Arts sales in the US. The quality of copies coming out of China today should give pause to anyone wanting to collect the genuine articles.

Anyway, a while back I drew his attention to a trade journal obituary of a supposedly prominent dealer whom I’d not heard of. My friend not only knew of him, he told me of an incredible purchase made by the man that rivaled George Steinbrenner’s acquisition of the Yankees. Because William’s coup in the book echoes (some of) my friend’s version, I am not going to tell it here. This is a teaser, after all. Suffice it to say, this stroke of good fortune involved as blatant an example of insider trading as one will find.

Another reason I’m holding back, though, is that when I reached out to other contemporaries of the deceased, none would confirm my friend’s account.  This was a disappointment. I was considering a non-fiction essay using this fabulous episode as a provocative way into the Asian arts world in general.

Nonetheless my friend’s story stayed with me because it was a good yarn, as the expression goes. The protagonist was an interesting character operating in an exotic field of wealth and deceit (recall what I said about fakes) that most people know nothing about. The plot contained a huge twist that opened up unexpected vistas holding their own surprises. The payoff was literally 9 figures. Yes, it was unsupported by facts, but as time passed, I realized it was fertile ground for a fiction writer. When I added it to my novel, new narratives sprang forth that deepened my understanding of Caleb. 

I owe my friend a debt for sharing this urban legend and can only hope I did it justice.

Author Interview:

On writing:

How did you do research for your book? 

Some of the news blurb required fact checking and I confirmed geographical details of settings where necessary. Otherwise the novel arose from my concerns about the polarization of our society.

Which was the hardest character to write? The easiest? 

Tawana was the most challenging because as an older Caucasian male, I wanted to be careful to write from Caleb’s experience of her rather than to presume to write about her experience. Sidney was the easiest, probably because I could have the most fun with him.

In your book you make a reference to free will; how did you come up with this idea? 

I open the book with a quote about the frightening nature of free will, a concept which at its core means we are responsible for the consequences, i.e. the harm caused by our moral decisions. I believe some people claim that a decision or action is “commanded by God” in order to absolve themselves of that responsibility.

Where do you get inspiration for your stories? 

For the past several years the political and cultural unrest in America has suggested much of what I write.

There are many books out there about “our time”. What makes yours different?

I hope it is a sense of humility. At the book’s end, Caleb finally understands his own growing contribution to the generational dysfunction of his family and the greater dysfunction in our country.

What advice would you give budding writers? 

Talent is not enough to succeed. Submit your work to criticism, even if you don’t accept all of it; learn from the examples of those who have found print; and most importantly, persevere in the face of the inevitable rejections.

Your book is set in Northern Kentucky and Manhattan. Have you ever been there? 

I traveled a good bit through Northern Kentucky in my 20s and lived in NYC during my 30’s. I still visit the city often.

If you could put yourself as a character in your book, who would you be?

I would like to be in the audience of one of Tawana’s Park engagements.

Do you have another profession besides writing?

I practice the trade of arbitrage or, more simply, I buy and sell items at auction, mostly art prints but some other collectibles also.

How long have you been writing? 

I have been writing for over three decades.

Do you ever get writer’s block? What helps you overcome it? 

When I get stuck, I simplify the language and sentence structures that I’m using which forces me to examine an idea or passage in its parts.

What is your next project? 

Boy meets girl with what I hope is a startling modern twist.

What genre do you write and why?

For the most part I write literary fiction, probably because of an inflated sense of self.

What is the last great book you’ve read? 

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

What is a favorite compliment you have received on your writing? 

That someone stayed up late because they couldn’t stop reading my book.

How are you similar to or different from your lead character? 

I don’t think I have his tolerance for pain.

If your book were made into a movie, who would star in the leading roles?

I don’t think of this book in terms of a movie. I worry what a filmmaker would turn it into.

What were the biggest rewards and challenges with writing your book? 

The book was its own reward. I looked forward to getting up each morning because of it. I felt guilty about the hell I put Caleb through.

In one sentence, what was the road to publishing like? 

A journey with a lot of roadblocks to a destination that I did not envision at its start.

Which authors inspired you to write? 

Cormac McCarthy and Thomas Wolfe, oddly enough.

On rituals:

Do you snack while writing?

No

Where do you write? 

Usually in my back room in front of the wood stove, whether it is lit or not.

Do you write every day? 

Yes, when a project has a hold of me. Otherwise, intermittently until one does.

What is your writing schedule? 

I write first thing in the morning.

Is there a specific ritualistic thing you do during your writing time? 

I’m a bit atavistic in that I write with paper and pen and type the results into the computer when I have achieved a block.

Fun stuff:

If you could go back in time, where would you go? 

I wouldn’t; I don’t see any golden era that we have lost.

Favorite travel spot? 

Kona, Hawaii with accommodations on the Pacific

What’s the funniest thing that ever happened to you? The scariest? The strangest? 

Though I can’t remember any of his material, I once had a friend in my 20s who could consistently make me fall down laughing. 

The scariest: when I was a child, my father was barely able to avoid a car that was driving the wrong way at us on a highway. 

As to the strangest, I can’t pick one as the world is a strange old place in general.

What’s the most courageous thing you’ve ever done? 

I chased and tackled an Apple picker–someone who snatches iPhones–near Washington Park in Manhattan.

Any hobbies? 

I used to paint and make wood sculptures; the latter activity in slightly altered form found its way into this book.

If there is one thing you want readers to remember about you, what would it be?

That I wrote with the hope that doing so would make the world better than I found it.

What TV series are you currently binge watching? 

Elementary

What is your favorite thing to do, whatever the season? 

I look forward to exercising: pushups, sit-ups and a little jog.

What is a favorite holiday memory? 

My family’s trip to Kona was especially impactful, so much so that I went into mini-mourning the last day at the thought of leaving. The experience inspired one of the short stories I am most proud of.

What is something that made you laugh recently? 

A highway billboard for a personal injury lawyer whose tagline was “We win a lot”. They paid someone to come up with that!

What is your go-to breakfast item? 

Oatmeal with blueberries, walnuts and bananas.

Tell us about your longest friendship. 

My longest friendship is with my wife. Beyond that, I’ll keep our relationship private.

What is the strangest way you've become friends with someone? 

I met another buyer at an auction who is in many ways the extreme opposite of me, certainly politically, but somehow we got past that to become close.

Who was your childhood celebrity crush? 

Anne Murray

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