Mercury

by Cary C. Holladay

On a Saturday night three teenagers break into an abandoned neon factory and are fascinated by a vat of mercury glistening in the half-light. They play with the strange, silvery substance, coating their arms and cigarettes with it. For Katelynn, the poisoning is swift and debilitating. For one of her companions, it is a death sentence.

While slowly recovering from mercury poisoning, Katelynn witnesses the sinking of a local tour boat outside her family’s lakeside home. Louisa, the boat’s captain and one of only two survivors, is devastated by the enormity of the tragedy and seeks out Katelynn, hoping the young witness can help her better understand what happened. As Louisa and Katelynn grow close, the two begin a journey that will ultimately take them both to the edge of loss and within reach of redemption.

Cary Holladay’s Mercury relates haunting stories of unforgettable people with self-assurance and literary skill rare for a debut novel. This richly textured and moving book will stay with the reader long after the last page is turned.

Genres: Fiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published May 14, 2002

Reviews

[Bobbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite books by Cary Holladay. It illustrates what she does so well, skillfully weaving historical facts into imaginative stories that make her characters come to life and seem so real. In this book, the main character is a young teen who along with two of her friends a young male and another girl find an abandoned warehouse where there is a vat of mercury. Not realizing the danger of the irridescent substance but only seeing what beautiful colors it has, they play with it. Both girls rub it on their arms to admire the eerie glow, and one girl even puts on her cigarette and smokes it. Really bad idea. She's dead within a month. The other girl is trying to recover from mercury posioning; thus the story begins. Check it out for a different but rewarding read, with characters you won't forget long after you finish the book.

[Sarah Honenberger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating set of quirky but real characters in small lake town suffer trauma of mercury poisoning, boat accident, separation of parents, and death of a friend. You will find friends in these people who you wish you knew in real life. Subtle, light, but resonating treatment of some of life's biggest challenges. Deft ending that projects into the future. I'd look forward to a sequel. Author has short story collection that is equally as enjoyable, if not more compelling.

[Susan Straight · Rating 5 out of 5]

I discovered Cary Holladay by accident, and now I'm reading all her fiction. This novel is stunning, told by a teenage girl in Virginia horse country, and Hollday's prose is astonishingly lyrical and unforgettable. Her images are great - "other girls had hairdos - she had bumpy hair." Three girls break into a neon factory and smoke mercury-dipped cigarettes. The language shimmers.

[Gina · Rating 3 out of 5]

The title comes from a character's experimentation with smoking mercury dipped cigarettes (who knew?) but that's not particularly central to the story. It's another relationship story with some bordering-on-unbelievable characters: the mercury girl, a 60's something tour boat pilot who become her best friend, a teenager who buys a tamale van when his family dies in a boat accident, a famous singer who appears out of nowhere to marry the boat pilot after meeting her once 40 years ago...

[Richard J. Alley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Please see my book reviews at http://uurrff.blogspot.com

[Wendy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Probably a good read for teens.