In search of a cure for the poison that is slowly killing him, Riggs Bombay, the boy who is not afraid of one single thing, sets off in a lung-shaped airship, his toxic hallucinations in tow. While navigating through physical, mental, and spiritual realms, Riggs discovers a most peculiar book, which drives his quest to the farthest reaches of the universe. There, despite the efforts of power-hungry scoundrels, eccentric philosophers, insatiable spirits, and creepy old men, Riggs must deliver the book into the hands of the one person in the cosmos who wants absolutely nothing to do with it! At once classic and innovative, this whirlwind fantasy is rich in myth, magic, and humor, underpinned by profound mathematical, psychological, and philosophical truths.
Josh Wagner is an American novelist and playwright based primarily in Missoula, Montana. He also writes graphic novels, short stories, and screenplays. His style is heavily influenced by metafiction, folk tales, and surrealist modern literature.
Josh Wagner was born with a broken heart. Fresh out of the womb with Patent Ductus Arteriosus, he required open heart surgery to close off an artery that should have closed itself. The doctor who performed the surgery was Leonard Bailey, a scalpel wizard who eventually went on in 1984 to implant the first baboon heart into a human, the 12-day-old girl known as "Baby Fae". In a startling coincidence, that same year Josh had his heart metaphorically broken for the first time by a girl in his 5th grade class. Her name was not Fae, as much as Josh's literary sensibilities might wish it. The scar from his operation is still visible, a long jagged thing running all the way up his back from just behind the base of his ribs. Wagner continues to insist that this is actually where a dragon once bit him. The scar from his first crush is a bit harder to find.
In 1992 Wagner published his first short story, a year before graduating high school. "The Finger", printed by Lost Worlds Magazine was about a secret cabal of world leaders who orchestrated all major global events. Wagner would later regain his enthusiasm for politics and secret societies, but until the late 90′s Josh wasted his most fertile years writing bad sci-fi, chasing skirts, and trying to become a rock star. Everything changed in 1999 when he took a six week tour through India. That ancient country got its hooks in him, and Wagner wrote his first real novel, "The Adventures of the Imagination of Periphery Stowe".
Since then Wagner has written two more novels, several short stories and graphic novels, two stage plays, and short films. He travels extensively, but considers Missoula his home.
