At once lyrical, humorous, heartbreaking, bitter, and wry—this engaging collection introduces a character like none other seen in the history of poetry. American Prophet is a collection of poems that details the sojourns of a so-called Prophet across the American landscape, from coastal beaches to strip malls to cities to heartland farms. As the Prophet tries continually but fails to reach “his people,” his urgent messages go unnoticed or get swallowed by the machines and cacophony of contemporary America.

Through this failed American Prophet, we question notions of faith and doubt, of media, of consumerism, of politics and war, of spirituality and secularism. We consider the question of who or what to believe in now, of how to live—in this new century that finds our nation ever more plugged-in and charged, and ever more on the brink.

In addition to American Prophet and The Seed Thieves, Robert Fanning is the author of Old Bright Wheel, winner of the Ledge Press Poetry Chapbook Award. A graduate of the University of Michigan and Sarah Lawrence College, his writing awards include a Creative Artist Grant from ArtServe Michigan, the Inkwell Poetry Award, and the Foley Poetry Award. His work has been published in Poetry, Ploughshares, Shenandoah, The Atlanta Review, and several other journals. He is a professor of Creative Writing at Central Michigan University in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan.