One winter morning, Harvey Painter, a young poet, is visited at home by
a fan, who introduces herself as Anna Geller. The two spend hours
together talking about his writing. As Anna prepares to leave, she
reveals that she too is a poet-a poet who, so far, has written only one
poem, titled, Body of Winter, which she gives to Harvey before hastily
exiting his apartment and his life.
Thirty years later, an investigative reporter stumbles upon an
extraordinary story. For almost three decades, a woman who goes by the
name of Anna Geller has secretly visited and given poems to people in
countries around the world. The mystery surrounding the poet, whose
whereabouts are unknown, along with the unequalled quality of her work,
turn Anna Geller into a literary sensation. Her poems, all handwritten,
soar in value. Anna Geller conventions are held the world over. Armies
of people begin searching for her. Harvey, now a teacher, is swept up in
a celebrity-by-association maelstrom and soon becomes the most famous,
then infamous, of all the poet's gift-recipients, particularly after he
falls victim to an elaborate scheme to steal Body of Winter.
Brian Prousky's magnificently rendered novel is both a loving tribute to
poets and poetry and withering critique of the cult of celebrity.
