A Russian beauty, her dead Moroccan husband and a tiny oasis of bizarre and untrustworthy characters conspire to make a fever dream of a novel in this rich debut. The Western Sahara desert is to some a void, to others a refuge, and to still others a home worth fighting for. Lili stumbles into the centre of this exotic world as she escapes a husband she never wanted, even as he lies gasping in the sand next to his expensive car, his gold chains ripped from his neck. But why have they come to this desolate place and why has she stood calmly by while he takes what must be his final breaths? "Oasis" is thrilling from page one, taking us from the cold of poverty-stricken Russia to the depths of the Bosphorus, the high-priced hotels of Morocco, and the sandy, sultry confines of a shimmering oasis, where Lili finally comes to rest long enough to unravel the lies that have driven her to this tiny outpost of humanity. Set against a political conflict that is tearing the Sahara apart under her feet, "Oasis" is women's literary fiction at its finest - part love story, part mystery, but entirely a rapturous read. Laureen Vonnegut's debut is a timeless tale of one woman's struggle to overcome her life of captivity and call the world her own.
--This text refers to an alternate
Hardcover
edition.
Laureen Vonnegut is an American writer living between Mexico and Romania. She has lived in London, California, Bulgaria and Hungary. She enjoys traveling, running, and harassing the Bucharest street dogs.
Her latest novel, TWIN LIES, was released June 2011. Her previous novel, OASIS, was published by literary press Counterpoint/ Perseus Books.
She directed a series of video readings of OASIS which can be seen on YOUTUBE or METACAFE.COM. She has also written several and directed several short films: STUFF THAT BEAR!, CUCKOO AND ICE CREAM and DON'T SAY 'I LOVE YOU'.
In the United States she has had over a dozen short stories published in five different states. In the UK, she has had a short story in the VIRAGO anthology: THE NERVE - BOOK OF WRITING WOMEN and two excerpts from her novel HANDS DO LIE. In addition to a short story in STAPLE magazine and a script, CROTCH PIT, published in EM3 magazine. She was shortlisted for the Ian St James Award.
Her short film called STUFF THAT BEAR, was directed by Bruno Coppola. The film was opened at the Cannes Film Festival and showed in more than 70 festivals worldwide, winning 15 awards, in addition to accreditation for the Academy Awards.
Her next project is a theater play called, THE PORCINI TEST.
