DANCING WITH GODS

About the Book

Dancing with Gods is the story of a fallen-away Mormon colliding with the cultures of India. A product of the '60's and a Wyoming ranch background, Henry Hotspur is in search of something more than can be delivered by his traditional American upbringing. Aided by a sympathetic uncle, young Henry is afforded the opportunity to travel to India in search of enlightenment. Against the strong objections of his parents, Henry, dangerously idealistic, takes his uncle's money and runs; in India, Henry experiences the Delhi expatriate hip scene of the '60's, an attempt at yogic realization, an unorthodox Peace Corps experience, and love. At heart a cross-cultural love story, Dancing with Gods delivers Henry into the arms of India and his beloved Kamla, and through that joy and enlightenment, discovery of his creative self. The two fall in love and explore both their own bodies and that of Indian culture. At the pinnacle of passion and love, however, Kamla meets her death. Henry is devastated. Determined to know Kamla through spirit rather than body, Henry makes an existential decision to stay in India until his funds are exhausted. While there, he comes to appreciate not only his love for Kamla, but also discovers a reconciliation of his own heritage with his perception of deep meaning in Indian culture. Upon Henry's returning to America, the novel achieves focus on the uncle-nephew relationship with their intellectual discourse and their exploration of the common Mormon past they have both rejected. Henry earns academic credentials to teach American literature, joining his uncle who is a professor of American history. In the end, Henry realizes that his love of India and Kamla have enhanced his appreciation for the potential that is America, along with his own creative potential. A free-floating narrative spanning over 125 years, Dancing with Gods is at once humorous, dangerous, and bitter-sweet. In this partially autobiographical novel, the sights and sounds of India, Wyoming, and nineteenth-century, Mormon Utah come alive on the page. Anyone interested in exotic love will want to read this novel.

About the Author

Born in Cody, Wyoming, raised in the Bighorn country of Wyoming, Larry Godfrey has spent his life teaching and living around the world, from Hyderabad, India, to New Orleans, Louisiana to Muscoda, Wisconsin. After years of teaching writing and literature to both university and high school youth, Larry Godfrey now lives with his artist wife, Elvira, in the high desert country of New Mexico. Nurtured by their love of books and by the austere desert beauty of their home, the Godfreys have happily committed their final years to learning from the desert and indulging their enjoyment of making art.