From Publishers Weekly
A hermit opens his heart to love in Thayer's moving second novel (after Strong for Potatoes), which takes its title from a poem by Emily Dickinson. When a fire kills his wife, son and daughter, Peter MacQueen retreats to his coastal cabin in Maine, interacting with nobody except Dora, an old Passamaquoddy Indian, and his faithful pet, Dog. He also finds solace in his bagpipes, his few books and a mournful ritual involving his dead daughter's dollhouse, but a guilty secret relentlessly haunts him. A pregnant woman, Elaine, on the run from her cruel husband, shows up on his property, desperate for shelter from a winter storm; the two share a bittersweet healing. Initially irritated by Elaine's presence, Peter eventually opens a tentative crack in his emotional door. Elaine tells him about the miscarriage she suffered when she was a teenager and about the excruciating tensions of growing up with healthy hormones in a restrictive Jehovah's Witness environment. After Elaine's daughter is born and named AzelinA"Spared by Jehovah"A Elaine must decide whether to stay or return to her husband. Thayer's tale is deeply poetic and quasi-Freudian, with the dollhouse in Peter's cabin serving as a potent symbol of the characters' unconscious desires. The other central motif is Elaine's pregnancy: ideas of renewal, fear and sacrifice in bringing forth new life come to the surface when it becomes clear that Azelin may need a blood transfusion, which Elaine's religion prohibits. If Thayer is heavy-handed with such themes, her characters are plainspoken and lucid as well as complex, and their progress toward emotional healing becomes an engrossing story with inspirational power. Agent, Sandy Choron. (Aug.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Library Journal
Thayer!s (Strong for Potatoes) second novel treats the unusual relationship between an aging, socially withdrawn man and a young, pregnant woman. Peter has lived a hermitlike existence in his cabin on the Maine coast for years since his wife and children died in a house fire. His only companions are an old dog and Dora, an elderly Native American woman who lives in a nearby cabin. Elaine, who appears at Peter!s cabin during an ice storm, has deliberately sought his place as a refuge while she make decisions about her life and baby, who may require a blood transfusion at birth, a procedure forbidden by her Jehovah!s Witnesses sect. Peter is at first angry at the imposition of a needy stranger, but he gradually comes to rely on Elaine!s companionship and help with his animals and garden. He finds himself opening up to the world again, falling in love, and resolving his guilt over his family!s death. Dora, a former midwife, assists with Elaine!s delivery, while Elaine!s husband, the book!s only two-dimensional character, provides a threatening presence. Thayer!s knowledge of gardening, sheepherding, and even bagpipes (Peter!s avocation) enriches the story, and the uncertainty of Peter and Elaine!s future together keeps the pages turning. Highly recommended."Reba Leiding, James Madison Univ. Lib., Harrisonburg, VA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
