Customer Reviews

Requiem for Locusts

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There are few books I have read where I stopped mid-paragraph and said, "Wow. This is really good writing." Wendy Parciak's debut novel Requiem for Locusts is one of them.

"Consider a street, any street, in a neighborhood," Parciak writes in her prologue, "Place this neighborhood in any town in any country in the world, or, for accuracy, place it in an affluent one, where the ties that bind people together have loosened and often broken apart... For simplicity, we will give the street a name. Let's call it Locust Street..."

Requiem for Locusts is the story of neighbors who know nothing about one another's lives but who are drawn together by a mentally handicapped young woman named Marzita. The residents of Locust street are multi-faceted and interesting characters. Each chapter is from a different character's point of view and it's truly fascinating to see how they see the world. Not one of the neighbors knows the others on a first-name basis and each lives very private, secluded lives. What is most powerful about this novel is that this could be any street, perhaps yours. How well do you know your neighbors? What sort of fascinating lives could they be living, that you are completely unaware of?

Everything changes when the Zaferatos family moves to town. They are circus performers and very loud, open, and inviting people. Yet what draws them all together is their strange daughter Marzita, a twenty-something woman who lives in a fantasy world in her head.

Reading this book was a real pleasure. I was enthralled by Parciak's characters and disappointed it had to end. I have a new appreciation for mental illness and the patience and love it requires from families. If there were only one thing I could say to Mrs. Parciak about her first novel it would be this: Brava!

by Jennifer Melville

for Story Circle Book Reviews

reviewing books by, for, and about women

A tough topic- mental illness and the very "inconvenience" it causes to our day to day lives. It's hard to find fiction about mentally ill characters that don't glorify or play it for laughs. Parciak's book is honest; the characters are well develped and imperfect. AS another reviewer commented, it would be easy for this story to depress, but instead it ends on a hopeful note. For me the overriding themes were "compassion" and "gratitude."

Requiem for Locusts is an engaging story, and it is somewhat surprising in its treatment of mental illness. Marzita's mental illness is tragic, and we are given a glimpse of the profound pain it causes her; this could be a depressing read, but it somehow delivers hope. Intelligently written and full of unexpectedly sympathetic characters, humor, and vivid imagery, this novel explores more than the afflictions of its central character. The individual neuroses and insecurities of the "normal" residents of Locust Street play out in their encounters with Marzita and other neighbors and in their intimate relationships.

I really enjoyed this book and can't wait to see what Parciak will write next. I'm adding her to my list of favorite authors to watch for!

A capacity for understanding how even a capricious disease can become a power for community-building, gift-giving and a motive for personal growth in others, energizes and carries this wonderfully character-driven story. Parciak's ability to divine the positive potential even in what could be dismissed as an overwhelming negative, inspires and encourages more open-eyed and open-hearted reconsideration of many more everyday tragedies. Randy L. Lodjic

It's a delicious read and an informative slice of life in spite of the sadness.

The subtleties of steps in segue from the outer edges of 'normalcy' to the inner chaos of mental illness are portrayed masterfully. The nature of each individual is developed and revealed steadily throughout the activity, in which you also live on Locust Street and find these are your neighbors, too.

It all seems normal, familiar, not far afield from the way things are in our daily lives -- chuckles and oopses and frustrations -- until the very riveting unraveling ends the story but not the reader's involvement in the reality.

Have you ever wondered what really goes on in your neighbor's homes?

Requiem for Locusts tackles that problem in new and surprising ways. The novel revolves around Marzita, a young woman with mental problems that have eluded diagnosis. But it seems all the people on the block live with their own illusions/delusions, everyone has submerged conflicts between their self images and their deepest needs. Their interactions with Marzita challenge the stereotypes they hold about themselves, as well as the stereotypes they hold about their neighbors, and reveal to us characters much more complex than we originally imagined.

Parciak also helps us FEEL Marzita, so she no longer is an outsider or an "other." Although Marzita's condition is infinitely sad, the growth that all the characters experience mean the novel is not downbeat.

In addition to being a great general read, the book would appeal to those who have had to deal with mentally ill family members. And if you know anyone who has the same combination of problems that Marzita has, the diagnosis at the end could be an important eye opener.

I didn't expect to like this book as much as I did. The characters were well developed over the book length and became easily real to the reader, even though you might originally think they were over the top. The neighborhood could be anywhere and it makes you stop and think not just of the possibilities of community, but of the need for it. I stopped many times in the book to think of mental illness and how difficult it is for the families who must deal with it. A great read with value added.

People, for the most part, live in their own little world. "Requiem for Locusts" follows Marzita Zaferatos, an insane woman who wanders Locust Street. Through her wandering she breaks into the lives of its many residents and pops the isolated bubbles of their worlds. Exploring society through a woman who doesn't understand society's unwritten taboos, "Requiem for Locusts" is an intriguingly written novel that asks questions and provides interesting answers.

Parciak has a rare gift for rich character development that leads a reader into the hearts and minds of all the novel's characters. This is a well written and well woven tale that allows a glimpse into the life and mind of a mentally ill young woman as well as an honest look into the lives of all those who surround her. It was a wonderful reminder that all beings have the capacity to affect others in both positive and negative ways regardless of who they are. I wholeheartedly recommend this book!