Billy Bowater: a novel
By E.C. Hanes.
William Bowater III, the title character of Hanes? debut novel, begins his career in politics as the Chief Administrative Assistant for Wiley Hoots, the senior senator of North Carolina. Despite hopes of securing a legacy for himself, Bowater instead becomes embroiled in backroom dealings and ethical dilemmas centered around a controversial art exhibit. A fictionalized version of actual events in the author?s life (think the National Endowment of the Arts and Jesse Helms), ?Billy Bowater? explores the role of the arts, religion and ethics in American politics. ?I wanted to write a book that would put into perspective the tendency in politics to use whatever might upset an anxious public in order to win at any cost,? says Hanes.