Some of the most interesting and genuinely commendable people in the world are systematically overlooked by our celebrity-obsessed media. This book is a reminder of just what a mistake that is--here you will meet some truly extraordinary people, from subsistence farmers, cattle ranchers, rodeo rascals, a miraculous middle school teacher, and a munificent unlicensed auto mechanic, to Italian Franciscans, out-of-the-box college and university professors, an independent-minded British poet, and a northern timber wolf. All of these characters have something to teach, but they do it in eccentric ways that will challenge your expectations and reward your willingness to break a mold or two yourself.

David Lyle Jeffrey is a retired professor who, for much of his life, lived and worked in the rough highlands and marginal farm country of the upper Ottawa Valley in Canada. The author of books about historic Christianity and its influence on poetry and the visual arts, he has occasionally ventured upon uncredentialed theological reflection and, even more precariously, committed random acts of poetry.