| When it was published it earned reviews that both praised and panned it. One stinging rejection came from a notable writer and critic who said it carried “no theme, no message and no thought.” That critic was wrong. And one of today’s most preeminent novelists says “there is no book more important to her” than this one. The central character in this novel makes a most remarkable and inspiring transformation. Isn’t that precisely why we read fiction? We want to believe in change. We want to be swept up in a character's dreams and aspirations, and this character delivers! Born into poverty and married off at 16, she is isolated, diminished and ignored. When her second marriage is also painful and unfulfilling, this character succumbs to disillusionment about love and nearly gives up on the search for her identity. The novel is not autobiographical but there are scenes and experiences from the author’s own life, including a climactic storm that the author and her character survived. In the end, the character emerges with a strong sense of conviction about the power of the life she has led and the story she has to tell. Can you guess who this character is and the novel in which she appears? Here’s a short paragraph to give you one more clue: “Here was peace. She pulled in her horizon like a great fish-net. Pulled it from around the waist of the world and draped it over her shoulder. So much of life in its meshes! She called in her soul to come and see.”
When you have a guess tweet me @KerriMPR.
— Kerri Miller | MPR News | 