Mr. Scraggs

Mr. Scraggs is a comic masterpiece from the early 20th century that captures a vanished America with savage humor and deep affection. Ezekiel George Washington Scraggs arrives at a North Dakota ranch with a past he can't outrun: he was once a Mormon, accumulated several wives through that institution, and somehow survived the experience. His mournful disposition and captivating tales of matrimonial disaster make him a legend among the cowhands, though his mournfulness seems to stem from having left at least one of those wives behind. When young Alexander Fulton falls desperately for a woman who won't have him, Scraggs devises a scheme to help - because a man who's survived multiple Mormon wives knows a thing or two about romantic catastrophe. The novel blends frontier humor with something quieter and more moving: a portrait of people reinventing themselves on the edge of nothing, finding community and absurdity in equal measure. Phillips writes with the ear of a natural comedian and the heart of a poet.