Rush-That-Speaks is born in Little Belaire, into the Palm Cord family. Cords are like clans, Palm Cord, Buckle Cord, Water Cord, etc. In his seventh season, on his way to see the Gossip named Painted-Red, Rush meets a young girl named Once-A-Day from Whisper Cord who greatly impacts his life. The Gossips are close to fortune-tellers or story-tellers, with a slight reference to tarot reading in that they read glass slides called the Filing System. After his reading with Painted-Red, who tells him he's a Truthful Speaker, Rush-That-Speaks decides he wants to become a Saint.
After Once-A-Day leaves with the Dr. Boots List clan, Rush finds himself empty, and eventually decides to leave Little Belaire to find both her and himself. He spends a season with a Saint named Blink before finding the List, and sets about trying to learn the List's ways that are so alien to him as a Truthful Speaker. The Dr. Boots List lives with large cats, prowling their home of Service City as freely as the human do. Rush-That-Speaks must reconcile his present with both past and future, and make sense of the many riddles told to him about life.
While this may sound like the book is hard to follow, you'll find that it isn't. In a futuristic post apocalyptic world, people have carved out conclaves bearing resemblances to towns or cities, each unique in their lives and beliefs. Most people live and die in their own conclave, making Rush's journeys exceptional.
The world, consisting of what folks now call "angels", launched a satellite into the sky now called "Little Moon" before The Storm destroyed their society. They also sent out probes that returned carrying the seeds of bubble-like trees that produce "St. Bea's Bread", a smokeable source of food. These are items taken for granted in this vibrant yet languid fantasy classic. (though its often classified as SciFi, its more a fantasy tale)
You'll appreciate the complexities of a society alien to us, the survivors of what had once been ours, and how they live their lives among the ruins. Little Belaire held such charm for me that I was as sad when Rush left as he must have been.
The story is told as Rush-That-Speaks relays his tale to an angel, beginning with the beginning and ending with the ending. The story is well-written, intriguing, complex with riddles and mysteries, and ripe with fully-fleshed characters. Let you imagination go, and pick up this hidden jewel of a book. Enjoy!