Dr. David Bridges, a native of Johnson City, Tennessee, will have a book signing at the Bristol Public Library on Friday, February 21st at 10:00 AM. Dr. Bridges will be talking about and signing his new novel The Broken Circle. The Broken Circle is set against the backdrop of the Civil War. The hero, Bridges’ great-great-uncle Dr./Major James Breathed, chooses the Cause of the Confederacy over medicine. Will that decision cost him the love of his life? James is swept into the tragic American war created by divisions between the northern and southern states, and between families. For more information about this book signing, please contact the BPL on 276-821-6148.
The Broken Circle tragically sets the paradoxical inner conflict Breathed has of saving life as a doctor versus destroying life as a soldier. He re-channels his genius from medicine to master warrior of death and destruction. The novel is explosively full of historically accurate battle scenes and all the characters are real historical people. Mollie Macgill, his female equivalent, utilizes her espionage talents as the two fall in love throughout the course of the war. Mollie faces her own conflicts as she struggles to maintain her way of life and preserve her family, as the war tears her emotionally apart and as she despairs and becomes disheartened.
Among many of the central themes of the novel are the Christian faith of both James and Mollie, which are ultimately tested and shaken by the trials and tribulations of the war. In the final post-war chapters they both seek redemption from God for their greater devotion to the Southern Cause. As they seek to repair their shattered souls, the novel reveals the tragic brokenness of James’ and Mollie’s lives and that of their families.
In 2013 Dr. James Breathed received the Confederate Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry, bravery, and intrepidity at the risk of life, above and beyond the call of duty while engaged in action. It was awarded by the Sons of Confederate Veterans.
Reverend David P. Bridges is Adjunct Professor of Writing at The University of Richmond. He served a quarter of a century as a Presbyterian minister and currently is retired and serving as a Chaplain at Hunter Holmes McGuire Veterans Hospital. David has degrees in Economics from University of Kentucky; Master’s of Divinity from Louisville Presbyterian Seminary; post-graduate studies: University of Chicago, Divinity School, Hollins University, and Johns Hopkins University.
Bridges' books include The Best Coal Company in All Chicago, 2003, The Bridges of Washington County, 2003, and Fighting With JEB Stuart: Major James Breathed and the Confederate Horse Artillery, 2006. David is a gardener, an avid hunter, and a Civil War Re-enactor with the 2nd Virginia Cavalry/Stuart Horse Artillery and Lee’s Lieutenants. He lives in Richmond, Virginia. His boyhood home in Johnson City was sold to East Tennessee State University and is now used as the home of the University’s president.