A Vice Supreme

Gilbert Rangle, 88, is the last surviving member of the Supreme Court of the United States under Chief Justice Earl Warren.Rangle's last project in life is a series of unique visits to the graves of Presidents.Rangle is devoted to his daughter Alice and to Milton Dorsey, a retired bishop of the United Methodist Church. Milton is "one of the near-great consciences of America. When he was still a Republican he'd served Eisenhower on the Civil Rights Commission, then marched in Alabama with King, been prosecuted with Spock, prayed with Carter, prayed for Reagan, and finally simmered down when it became clear that not all the troubles of black America were going to yield to the strategies of the civil rights movement."Through some misadventures with Milton's nephew, Congressman Ike Dennis of Detroit, Rangle is drawn with utmost reluctance into Ike's effort to become the first black Vice President of the United States.How can Rangle complete his difficult final mission, a visit to the grave of John F. Kennedy? How will he fulfill his obligation to the Dennis campaign?

Hal Riedl is a Maryland civil servant who lives in Baltimore. This is his second novel.