Winona's Web: A Novel of Discovery [Paperback]

Priscilla Cogan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 15, 1997

To the surprise of her family, Winona Pathfinder, an elderly Lakota Sioux medicine woman, announces she intends to die in two months. For counseling, Winona is referred to psychologist Dr. Meggie O'Connor--Caucasian, middle-aged, and divorced. A reluctant client, the feisty Winona decides to turn the tables and teach Dr. O'Connor a thing or two about life, while steadfastly refusing to renounce her plans to die.



As fall turns to winter on the scenic Leelanau Peninsula of Michigan, Winona casts her web around the doctor. Ever-dubious, Meggie O'Connor sees her professional methods slowly crumble before the earthy humor and soaring spirit of her new teacher. Who is healing whom? Can the doctor convince Winona to step back from the gates to the spirit world?



As Meggie's eyes open, she also rediscovers the pull of romance, involving her with two intriguing Native American men. Strange visions begin to appear, and Meggie faces a battle of wills with her stubborn patient armed with a prayer pipe, a strong heart, and the conviction that she is about to "cross over."



Graceful and powerful, the story is deeply rooted in traditional Lakota teachings. Winona's Web will delight you and touch your heart with its message of hope and prayer, love and loss, and learning to listen to the web of the world.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Contrasting the values of modern Western culture with Native American beliefs, Cogan's well-told first novel pits a Michigan psychotherapist against an elderly Lakota woman who seemingly chooses death over life. Winona Pathfinder, a healthy 69-year-old medicine woman, walks into the office of narrator Megan O'Connor after being referred by her daughter, to whom Winona has revealed that she intends to die in two months. At first, Megan uses standard therapy tactics to try to shake Winona's preoccupation with death. When that fails, Megan begins to listen to her story; soon she becomes a pupil, as Winona imparts the Lakota way of life. As the sessions go on, the two women become friends, and the divorced therapist begins to see how her own loneliness is caused by what Winona sees as a lack of balance. The conceit may be cliched, but Cogan has a talent for characterization and weaves together the strengths and weaknesses of the two women with grace and flair. The author, a psychotherapist with a background in Native American ceremonies, earns bonus points for presenting the cultural material without proselytizing. More problematic are the sections dealing with Megan's friendships and infrequent romantic adventures, many of them mawkish. Though they represent a significant flaw, they seldom get in the way of a story that's full of understanding and compassion.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

Dr. Meggie O'Connor experiences a midlife crisis due to the failure of a long-term marriage and fear of her fortieth birthday. Although Meggie is the chief psychologist at a hospital in New York City, she relocates to her deceased grandmother's estate in northern Michigan and embarks upon a new life in private practice. Winona Pathfinder, a 69-year-old, pipe-smoking Native American medicine woman, becomes Meggie's client after her daughter despairs about Winona's unexplained desire to depart from the earthly realm. As Meggie attempts to learn the motivating factors behind Winona's death wish, their roles as therapist and patient reverse. Winona teaches Meggie about prayer, energy, and spirits during their soul-replenishing sessions. Winona's instruction and the healing traditions of the Lakota Sioux Indians facilitate Meggie's metamorphosis into a higher level of awareness regarding the purpose of her existence. First-novelist Cogan, a psychologist and pipe-carrier, guides the reader on an enjoyable and introspective journey of mysticism and enlightenment Liz Rifken --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 279 pages
• Publisher: Broadway Books (September 15, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385490488
• ISBN-13: 978-0385490481
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,226,162 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Encouraging. Entertaining. Warm. Funny., June 11, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Winona's Web: A Novel of Discovery (Audio Cassette)

I heard about Winona's Web from my neighbor Gail Korhonen whose book club thoroughly enjoyed it and so I thank Gail for lending me her copy. Suttons Bay,Michigan is a beautiful & familiar place, so I felt right at home with the characters. The story is about a psychologist who has an elderly patient by the name of Winona Pathfinder who is Lakota. Winona is not very interested in being psychoanalyzed and she becomes the therapist & no matter how much the psychologist tries to be scientific & business-like, Winona always has the patience to be both teacher & guide. The story is about death & life. The plot thoughtfully & successfully pits American Indian spirituality & tradition against science. Everything about this story is respectful to the American Indian people & our culture. It is the first book of fiction I have ever read by an Anglo that did not romanticize or dramatize or trivialize Indian people & our heritage and traditions. I was pleasantly surprised by the clever ways that Phyllis Cogan addressed important social & political issues that American Indian people deal with & frequently found myself rereading specific passages with appreciation for the sensitivity and knowledge. I like the people in this book & recognize them among my own friends. These characters are well developed. When I reached the last sentence in the book I was both satisfied & sad because I wanted to continue to travel with them on their journeys. All I could think about was a sequal.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A web of self discovery, a wonderful, sweet tale., October 2, 2001

By 

R. Peterson "International citizen" (Leverett, MA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Winona's Web: A Novel of Discovery (Paperback)

This was a sweet book and I encourage women of all ages to read it. Our protagonist, Dr. Meggie O'Connor moves back to the family farm from New York City after her many year-old marriage fails and she is fast approaching her fortieth birthday. She is a psychologist and restarts her practice in northern Michigan. One of her early clients/patients is Winona Pathfinder, a Native American "healer" whose daughter has pushed her to therapy because she insists she will be dying soon, thank you very much. As this relationship grows it becomes more quickly evident to the reader than to Meggie that it is she who is being healed. Meggie learns a good deal about Winona's life, her decisions, and her reasons for the calm prediction of death and is drawn into the validity of the pipe-smoking, and the Native American `medicine' ways. In a very subtle way, Winona draws Meggie into a real change of view about who she is and what her value is. Finally, there is a love interest that, in a surprise in the end, makes the story wonderfully complete.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fictionalized account of client/therapist relationships, August 23, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Oakland, MD) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Winona's Web: A Novel of Discovery (Paperback)

I was given this book with the apologies that it opened with a bang but lacked alot in between. What I found though was quite the opposite. I drank in Winona's teachings, recognizing immediately how Priscilla Cogan has taken from her own practice and given to readers a glimpse into those special relationships that exist between therapist and client. All too often, persons in the helping profession believe that they have the ultimate knowledge. It is their loss when they fail to recognize the wisdom that their clients bring with them. What a mutual journey these settings provide and Pricilla Cogan has revealed that she is open to this exchange. Eloquently written with sensitive and appropriate quotations, this novel remains vivid in my mind, much like a good piece of chocolate. I have passed this title on to other helping individuals.