From Publishers Weekly
Witt's rambling second novel (after Slow Dancing on Dinosaur Bones) begins prosaically, if tenderly, with a Kentucky couple in bed after making love, and ambles toward a potentially moving yarn before stumbling over its heroine's eccentricities. Daydreaming Josie Tolliver is an immature 27, and her unimaginative but loving husband, Clarence, sometimes finds her confusingly fey. A quixotic, childlike bibliophile, Josie spends her days reciting Shakespeare and harboring fantasies of moving back to Sage, Ariz., where she was raised. Most of all, she dreams of finding her long-lost sister, Cheyenne, who disappeared when Josie was a teenager. Although everyone but Josie believes that Cheyenne is dead, she has "visions" and out-of-body experiences that prove her sister's presence in the world. Witt strives to convince the reader that Josie is gifted and special, contemplative and romantic, but her quirky character annoys rather than endears; she's wacky, to be sure, but not appealing. "Josie has always felt there should be a higher purpose in life, something mysterious and intriguing that takes the boredom out of ordinary existence," Witt writes. "But lately she's begun to suspect that there may be no such purpose, that nothing in this world really matters...." Such musings pass for depth, and are meant to illustrate Josie's questing nature. Witt's imagery often misses the mark as well: she begins one chapter by likening an Arizona sunrise to "an unruly penis." Josie's search for her sister, and for herself amid her various distractions (her books, husband, bars and friends), takes her on a whirlwind yet predictable path to fulfillment, but her enlightenment may strike readers as tepid. "I don't know where I'm headed but I'm out of the house and running, and the wind feels good on my face."
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
From Library Journal
Intellectually and spiritually, Kentuckian Josie Tolliver outgrows her TV-repairman husband, Clarence, taking up with both Shakespeare and Carlos Castaneda in the process. Breaking free of the confines of her hometown of Pick, she leads Clarence on a seemingly one-sided spiritual pilgrimage to the Arizona desert, where they settle in tiny Sage. There, during her childhood, Josie was once blissfully happy. Central to Josie's spiritual quest is solving the mysterious disappearance, at the age of 14, of her bullying yet beloved sister, Cheyenne. Sage turns out to be populated by the most colorful characters this side of consciousness, including twin sisters Venus Lily and Lily Venus, who own and operate the local watering hole, catering alternately to a migrant mining population and a local artists' colony. Witt's second novel (following Slow Dancing on Dinosaur Bones, LJ 2/1/96) has depth and humor, as well as singular observations on the pursuit of happiness. Josie's story is in capable hands and will be welcome in public libraries.AMargaret A. Smith, Grace A. Dow Memorial Lib., Midland, MI
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
