This book is about Padrow Guggenheim, a talented young man whose personal problems need to be resolved. In the beginning he is plagued by hallucinations. As he gets rid of these, his leadership qualities start to take over, and he becomes the heavyweight boxing champion of the world. He also becomes an authority on dirty fighting and exposes a leading Russian fighter, known as Tricky Sergeae, whom he gets sent to jail. Padrow is finally offered a position he cannot refuse, to become a kind of Sir Lancelot to help dirty young street fighters learn to live a life of chivalry and even elegance. Most of this learning takes place in a gorgeous new university made entirely of sculptured and colored glass. Many young girls are madly in love with Padrow, but he is waiting for the real Princess Guinevere to appear and possibly capture his heart

This book is about a grown man who returns to visit a town in rural Louisiana that he loved as a kid. This town had a sense of backwardness and virtually no modern conveniences, but its residents lived wonderful, carefree lives. He and his precocious daughter and a group of friends decide to improve life in the town without losing any of its charm. There are three levels of townspeople that must be addressed in order to make this work. There are Slimers, whose goal is to take advantage of residents who expect to make money off the naivete of the status quo. There are the Shovels, the name given to residents who have some basic knowledge of the legality of places and buildings and people's rights. And there are Wormsleys-residents who spend most of their time worrying while preparing for the future and who know that, ultimately, they will have to take a stand, along with the Shovelers, against the Slimers. The Shovelers have incorporated into an organization and are also becoming quite proficient in the use of martial arts. Together, these different groups will make this utopian society work.