ANDES - A book signing, reading and reception will be held Saturday, May 18 at Diamond Hollow Books, 72 Main St., Andes, from 5 to 7 p.m. to celebrate publication of Odysseus & Me, a poetic memoir by Andes resident Mary Overly Davis.
Davis will sign books and give a brief talk and reading at 6 p.m. The book includes original artwork by the first-time author.
A native Texan, Davis worked as an architect in New York City and was enjoying a seemingly idyllic life when her husband suffered a brain seizure in Central Park while walking with her and their 4-year-old daughter. With wit, grace, and tenderness, Davis uses poetic verse to tell the story of her life during and after his horrific six-year battle with an ultimately fatal tumor.
Davis was inspired to write about her experiences in a midnight epiphany while reading Homer’s classic epic poem, The Odyssey.
“I saw parallels to my own life in the many misadventures of Odysseus and his crew,” she says. “Except for the happy ending, I was living an analogy of the whole story.”
Davis says she began to ask herself, “What would Odysseus do?”
Borrowing Homer’s poetic devices of vivid descriptive similes, extensive speeches and repetition, Davis takes readers on her own long, strange trip, aligning locations, friends and enemies — both mortal and immortal — with those of The Odyssey as she explores the transient nature of human relationships.
Published by Delaware County-based News Ink Books, Odysseus & Me is available in local bookstores, and others.
For more information contact News Ink Books at 607.351.6608 or dkrajicek@aol.com
