The Resurrection of Carver Bryce
A Novel by Jon RittenbergMeet Carver Bryce, a thirty-something, six-figure-earning infomercial creator who’s determined to sidestep the hamster-wheel pursuit of empty riches for self-fulfillment: “To find his destiny before the grave.” He tries writing the Great American Novel but, to his horror, keeps churning out Harlequin-esque romance books.
Destiny is what happens when you are true
Chapter 1 — A Little Push
The funeral ended. Thinking I was alone, I stayed behind. I stood on the grave’s edge folding and unfolding the eulogy I’d scribbled earlier, more a note to myself than words for the departed it struck me. I crumpled it and watched my family hightailing it from the shade of the graveside tarp to their cars. Few remembered to look unhurried, most idly chatted about summer plans, their garden, the Red Sox. A half-uncle told dirty jokes, twin teenage cousins held their chins heavenward to tan their pretty freckled faces. Even Mother Nature trumpeted the day more than mourned it: in all directions birds chirped, dogwood trees bloomed, and the grass glowed as if each blade was lit from within.
The day’s cheeriness contrasted not only with the occasion but also with me.…