Nominee for the National Book Award: The story of an average American man searching for himself in the ruins of Old Mexico

At the start of this vivid and invigorating novel, Robert Brill has a farm, a law practice, two children (a high-school age daughter and a son fighting in Vietnam), and a wife who would rather drink sherry than do anything else. What more can a typical Midwesterner ask for in the late 1960s? A lot, thinks Brill.

Tired of distracting himself by drinking, hunting, and sleeping around, Brill leaves Illinois and his family in search of adventure. Inspired by a trip he made to the Yucatan in his younger years, he joins an archaeological dig in Puebla, Mexico. As he sifts through pre-Columbian artifacts, Brill sorts through the ruins of his life and imagines what might have been. One exhilarating fantasy involves the beautiful young graduate student sleeping in the next tent. But, as Brill soon discovers, the past is always with you, even when you are thousands of miles from home.

Witty, candid, and deeply felt, Brill Among the Ruins is considered by many critics to be Vance Bourjaily’s finest novel.