Toward Amnesia [Paperback]

Sarah Van Arsdale (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1997

Devastated when her lover of five years leaves her for another woman, a young marine biologist heads across the country, resolving to recreate her persona through cultivating a unique kind of amnesia. Reprint. NYT. K. AB.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

With unerring emotional clarity, Van Arsdale, in a poetic first novel, charts a woman's search for the land of amnesia, "where memory plagues no one," in the aftermath of her abandonment by the most important woman in her life, her lover and best friend. When it becomes clear that Libby has no plans to return home, and she tires of having to "explain again that feeling of having all the air forced from my lungs," the nameless protagonist, a research biologist, decides to walk out of her own life. She stores away in her attic in Durham, N.C., all of the mementos of her years with Libby, packs a couple of bags, cleans out her bank accounts, trades in her Toyota for a 1950 Chevy Bel-Air and drives off. Stopping along the way in a library, she finds in a medical reference the condition she hopes to induce. "And maybe it wouldn't have to be transient," she thinks. Eventually she heads the old Bel-Air north and west, aiming for a nameless island in a lake near the Canadian border. Here, she rents a cottage, renames herself "Virginia," cuts her hair and practices her amnesia exercises-which include learning to write with her left hand and drinking her coffee black. Her quest for oblivion is hampered by memories evoked by grocery stores, canoes and birthdays until, one day, Virginia suddenly realizes that she no longer has to work at it. Practical-minded readers will be troubled at first by such issues as mortgages and bills unpaid, by unforwarded mail and families left behind, but few will long remain immune to this telling of a fantasy entertained at one time or another by anyone who has ever felt the urge to flee in the face of pain.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Breaking up is easy to do. Accepting the breakup is the hard part. That is what the narrator in Toward Amnesia discovers when her girlfriend of five years leaves her for another woman. Increasingly obsessive, she drives by her ex's house every day to see whose car is in the driveway. She's most definitely in a rut?until she reads about transient global amnesia in a medical text. This is her way to get over the breakup and restore her confidence. She grabs onto amnesia with gusto and determination, shedding her old self like a cocoon and taking on a new identity and new habits. She empties her own and the joint savings accounts, buys a 1950 Chevy, and hits the open road. After a lot of driving and camping under the stars, the narrator ferries over to a tiny Canadian island, where she rents a cottage, finds work scraping boat hulls, and constantly works on the amnesia "exercises" of immersing herself in deep water for healing. This first novel by a poet who has been published in several anthologies and journals is an allegory of losing oneself in order to find one's inner core. It's also part road novel, part guided tour to the fish slicing through clear blue lakes, wildflowers, the edge of the sea, the night sky, and the orbit of the planets. Van Arsdale's descriptions of the natural environment are enchanting but not too flowery. Public libraries will want to add this one to their fiction shelves.?Lisa Nussbaum, Euclid P.L., Ohio
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Riverhead Trade (January 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1573225770
• ISBN-13: 978-1573225779
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,195,764 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A well-told story of self-discovery, September 10, 2003

By 

gac1003 "gac1003" (Long Beach, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Toward Amnesia (Paperback)

A young marine biologist is rattled by the break up with her lover of 5 years. In a state of confusion and disbelief about how they now feel about each other, she finds herself driving by her former lover's new home, wondering what her new life is like. She finally realizes that this is not going to help her situation, and after reading an article about a woman who disappeared for three weeks only to reappear in Florida, hundreds of miles from her home, she decides to disappear also, to remove every trace of her former life and to discover her true self.

This novel traces her path along the roads and highways of eastern North America, starting in North Carolina and settling on a remote island off the coast of Canada. Along the way, she discovers herslef through musings about relationships, her missing-in-action father, animals and nature -- especially about the mysterious catamount, a large mountain cat, which is on the verge of extinction and rekindles feelings about her own life's path.

It's a very moving story about self-discovery. Sarah Van Arsdale's style is poetic, very clear and detailed, making it quite enjoyable to read. I really liked the main character and how she handled herself in very realistic terms.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fantastic in depth look at the heart and soul., November 25, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Toward Amnesia (Hardcover)

After reading this book, almost two years ago, I was so moved by the poetry of Ms. Van Arsdale's words that still I have a vivid picture in my mind of each chapter. It is true that this book delves deep into heartbreak, and that in itself can be quite depressing, however it also delves deep into taking charge of ones brokeness. Reading this book could possibly change you... and there lies the beauty and power of literature. Bravo Sarah.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant Debut, June 4, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Toward Amnesia (Hardcover)

Wow! This book is for anyone who's ever been dumped by anybody. Ms. Van Arsdale writes beautifully. This story is filled with clear imagery and a deep understanding of loneliness and loss.