The Nation's Highest Honor: A Novel

By James Gaitis

At an unspecified time in the near future, the world has enjoyed decades of peace and prosperity thanks to the world-wide dissemination of an anti-violence vaccine that was invented by a ruthless... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1601641729
• ISBN13: 9781601641724
• Release Date: May 2009
• Publisher: Kunati Inc.
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 1.01 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.5" x 0.5" x 5.5"

Customer Reviews

A Treasured Find

I recently attended the Tucson Festival of Books and had the pleasure of meeting James Gaitis at one of the author pavilions. As with many of the authors I met that day, I asked Mr. Gaitis about himself and his books (he also had A Stout Cord and a Good Drop with him), and truly appreciated his straight-forward answers -- and so I purchased both of his books that day. I started reading The Nation's Highest Honor a few days ago, and was so engrossed in the story that I finished it in a few sittings. The story is filled with rich descriptions of the characters, their thoughts and their environments, laced with the right amount of sarcasm and satire to keep a smile on my face as I read about Leonard Bentwood and the other characters. Of the many, many books that I could have purchased at the festival, this was certainly a treasured find. I have recommended the book to my wife for her book club, and I highly recommend this book to any reader of important fiction.

"Highest Honor" is Highly Entertaining

Conspiracy theorists are going to lament they've been caught with their Kevlar underwear down after they inhale satirist James Gaitis's new novel, "The Nation's Highest Honor." Because "Highest Honor" entertains by spotlighting the dangers of what happens when the most diabolical conspiracies are allowed to flourish The beautifully written book examines the upheaval that results after a pharmacologically listless America begins to awaken from its collective stupor. The future has become the dreamland of many over-stressed parents who never worry about the effects of over-medicating their precocious kiddies. There are no fights. No wars. No dissent. No worries. It's all good. Mother's Little Helper comes in the form of the Nolebody Vaccine named after "benign" philanthropist Philip Nolebody, an Alfred Nobel sort with more sinister motivations. Nolebody discovered a way to inoculate the world against domestic and international violence. The government-dispersed vaccine is introduced through the air we breath and the water we drink. As the machines of war fall dormant, the consequences of man's newfound docility began cascading through society that allows itself to acquiesce to the numbness. "Wildlife populations exploded and the consumption of meat and fish came to an abrupt end, requiring entirely new management philosophies regarding public and private land," Gaitis writes. "Industry shrank. Incomes fell. Birth rates climbed. Consumption increased modestly in some ways and decreased dramatically in others. Health habits changed. Some for the better and some for the worse. Some arts and sciences flourished and other came to an abrupt and seemingly irreversible end. Sport took on a new meaning as did everything else. All of human behavior changed in the span of a dozen years." That included, according to elected leaders, the instinctual American drive for further elections that might end their reign. The utopia is disrupted, however, when the President learns the vaccine's effectiveness is about to expire en masse. Human nature in all its gory glory is about to reassert itself. The news will topple the static status quo with results that are likely to be bloody. Enter Leonard Bentwood. President tabs the beloved artist with a gift for savant inspiration to receive the prestigious Nolebody Award. Why Bentwood? In an age when controversy and passion is depleted, the feeble-minded Brentwood has become revered for his elegant simplicity the way Chancey Gardner was in Jerzy Kosinski's "Being There." The government figures it can use Bentwood's popularity to control the masses. They figure wrong. Bentwood's journey from a lavishly portrayed Sonoran homestead to a center of power controlled by "Unarmed Services" and the resulting chaos shows the power of one individual and that the most pervasive conspiracies are at risk when the spark of human nature is allowed to kindle. This is fine satire by a master storyteller.

The Nation's Highest Honor

The Nation's Highest Honor written by Jim Gaitis is an excellent book. Poetic and memorable, reminded me of Peace Like a River by Leif Enger. Glory Weathers

An Honor To Read

The Nation's Highest Honor is a great literary addition to my library. And it earned its spot beside my other greats: Twain and Leopold. Mr. Gaitis does an excellent job of engaging and enlightening the reader with the sense of satirical humor that reflects a deep sensitivity toward both the environment and society's outcasts. The Nation's Highest Honor is a not-so-subtle reminder that the simplest things in life can bring the greatest pleasures. And that the maxim "art is in the eye of the beholder" is, in some ways, more true than we can ever know.

Shades of Vonnegut

James Gaitis' The Nation's Highest Honor is a beautifully written piece of literature that will provide welcome relief for those readers who fear that literary satire died with the passing of Kurt Vonnegut. In addition, this remarkable novel, which tells the story of a desert hermit who has been chosen (for reasons not revealed until the end of the book) to receive the nation's highest honor at a time of global turmoil, will bring a smile to the face of those who treasure the naturalist and combative writings of Edward Abbey. For in many ways, The Nation's Highest Honor may fairly be compared to Abbey's The Monkey Wrench Gang and Desert Solitaire and to Vonnegut's greatest works. Gaitis' biography reflects a long history, both as a student and as a professional wearing many hats, working with the English language. His descriptive powers in portraying desert and mountain scenes are rivaled by his ability to convey a sense of the oppressive nature of cultural decay and governmental overreaching, albeit with a wry sense of humor and a charming ability to tease the reader with hidden and contradictory linguistic meanings. He accomplishes his purposes mainly through his protagonist, Leonard Bentwood--an elderly and rather forgetful desert hermit who has not the slightest idea that he is one of the most famous people in the world--and via a diverse cast of supporting characters whose flaws remind us of how absurdly silly and profoundly disturbing the human race can be. The Nation's Highest Honor is a "must read" book for those who enjoy the works of such literary satirists as Heller, Golding, and Twain and for lovers of great nature writers such as Leopold, Mowat, and Lopez.