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Loading... The White Mary: A Novelby Kira Salak
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will love Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. This was easily my favourite read of this year, and will probably place in my top ten reads ever. I found this to be a powerful read. Nothing was superficial and that was a welcome change. It was so powerful and raw, and very though provoking. I would highly recommend this book. This book is a tale of darkness and light with the main character, a reporter of Third World conflicts, finding herself through a search for another person. Descriptions of atrocities, while graphic, are key to the reader understanding the horror of "man's inhumanity to man" and the effect on those who live through those atrocities. Marika Vecera, the main character journeys through awakening experiences in Africa, Boston, and finally Papua New Guinea. The experiences ring true and are enhanced by the author's intimate knowledge of the places she writes about. To quote the author, this story "guides us from illusion to truth, from darkness to light." This is one the best books I've read all year. Not only is the character of Marika Vecera believable, she elicited so much sympathy from this reader that I was torn between wanting to finish the book and not wanting to leave the world she inhabited. I do realize this is a work of fiction but I reads like it's based on actual occurrences, and the author has confirmed this is the case. I'll admit it is very dark indeed. It contains scenes of torture, mutilation and suffering, but since the author had survived so much it seemed somewhat cathartic to even just read of her experiences. P.S. I have no plans to travel to New Guinea... ever! The White Mary has an intriguing premise. The main character, Marika Vecera, returns to her home in Boston after a hellish journalistic assignment in the Congo. Unable to get past her experiences there, Marika has withdrawn, pulling away from her boyfriend Seb when he tries to explain to her that talking about what happened would only be beneficial to her and to them as a couple. Marika has always been able to internalize her feelings and to detach herself mentally from what's she's seen during her career, and doesn't want help from anyone, especially from Seb. But when she discovers that her iconic idol, Robert Lewis, Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist, has committed suicide, Marika decides that she wants to write a book about Lewis. While she is gathering information and writing, she discovers that a missionary working in the wilds of Papua New Guinea has seen a man that he swears is Lewis and decides that she needs to go in search of him. For me, the best parts of the book were the scenes of Marika's time in New Guinea -- in the journey through the wilds and in the villages of the local natives. The scenes in the Congo and the story of Lewis in East Timor were raw and gritty, and very much worth the read. As far as characters, my favorite was Tobo, Marika's guide and the shaman of a local village in New Guinea. Salak's portrayal of Newlove, the missionary was also well done, even though he was a totally unlikeable character. The main characters were all a bit larger than life and I wasn't really impressed with any of them. Seb didn't come off as realistic (a bit too good to be true), and Marika's psychological issues made her at times not very likeable and I never really came away with the feeling that I'd bonded with her as a person. The dialogue was often stilted and unrealistic, especially between Marika and Seb. But Salak's novel tackles some important issues: how far can a person internalize pain and suffering without losing himself or herself, and at what point does one accept that sometimes no matter what you do, there's nothing you can do. I sort of liked the book, didn't love it, but the writing was overall good. It's hard to believe that this is her first novel, and although this book was kind of overdramatic and histrionic for my taste and often Marika's actions made no sense, it has received rave reviews elsewhere so it's something you'll just have to read it and judge for yourself. no reviews | add a review
Amazon.com Product Description (ISBN 0805088474, Hardcover)A young woman journeys deep into the untamed jungle, wrestling with love and loss, trauma and healing, faith and redemption, in this sweeping debut from “the gutsiest woman adventurer of our day” (Book Magazine) Marika Vecera, an accomplished war reporter, has dedicated her life to helping the world’s oppressed and forgotten. When not on one of her dangerous assignments, she lives in Boston, exploring a new relationship with Seb, a psychologist who offers her glimpses of a better world. Returning from a harrowing assignment in the Congo where she was kidnapped by rebel soldiers, Marika learns that a man she has always admired from afar, Pulitzer-winning war correspondent Robert Lewis, has committed suicide. Stunned, she abandons her magazine work to write Lewis’s biography, settling down with Seb as their intimacy grows. But when Marika finds a curious letter from a missionary claiming to have seen Lewis in the remote jungle of Papua New Guinea, she has to wonder, What if Lewis isn’t dead? Marika soon leaves Seb to embark on her ultimate journey in one of the world’s most exotic and unknown lands. Through her eyes we experience the harsh realities of jungle travel, embrace the mythology of native tribes, and receive the special wisdom of Tobo, a witch doctor and sage, as we follow her extraordinary quest to learn the truth about Lewis—and about herself, along the way. (retrieved from Amazon Fri, 24 Apr 2009 07:58:16 -0400) The first test round has been closed. Visit the Open Shelves Classification group for details. |
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Some things that kept this from getting five stars: I found it a bit unbelievable that she would go out on a wild whim in order to find someone. Sure, it was representative of a soul search (and was) but.... I still thought it a bit of a stretch. Also, almost all of the characters has supporting roles to Marika, they did not really seem to exist without her. Still, a great read. (