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BANYAN
“That summer lasted so long. The summer after Father killed himself. Hot, my God. We thought it would never end.”
With this deceptively listless complaint, we begin a journey into a psychological and paranormal mystery whose explanation is horrific.
It is 1959. Gerry and Clara Cuvier, a middle-aged brother and sister, live in seclusion in a once splendid house on the Caloosa River in southwest Florida. As a tropical disturbance in the Gulf of Mexico builds to hurricane force, Clara grows increasingly distressed over the bewildering emotions that accompany her confused memories of the dreaming time, and over her strange visions of houses she has never been in. Are the memories and visions only dreams, or are they the only reality, dimly remembered and tragically misinterpreted? If perception is reality, is not the dreamer inseparable from the dream?
Like the statue of Lorelei in her overgrown garden, “…a celestial being held captive by jungle vines, soft as sculpted moonlight, her dreaming face aglow under deep sea green,” Clara’s essence is captive to forces too illusive for her to grasp. It is, nevertheless, from her complex interplay of memory and illusion that the unspeakable and heartbreaking crime committed in this house finally emerges.
With this deceptively listless complaint, we begin a journey into a psychological and paranormal mystery whose explanation is horrific.
It is 1959. Gerry and Clara Cuvier, a middle-aged brother and sister, live in seclusion in a once splendid house on the Caloosa River in southwest Florida. As a tropical disturbance in the Gulf of Mexico builds to hurricane force, Clara grows increasingly distressed over the bewildering emotions that accompany her confused memories of the dreaming time, and over her strange visions of houses she has never been in. Are the memories and visions only dreams, or are they the only reality, dimly remembered and tragically misinterpreted? If perception is reality, is not the dreamer inseparable from the dream?
Like the statue of Lorelei in her overgrown garden, “…a celestial being held captive by jungle vines, soft as sculpted moonlight, her dreaming face aglow under deep sea green,” Clara’s essence is captive to forces too illusive for her to grasp. It is, nevertheless, from her complex interplay of memory and illusion that the unspeakable and heartbreaking crime committed in this house finally emerges.
1 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 3, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review
January 26, 2016
This is a different story than most. We are immersed in the memory of a time and place that isn't the same anymore. To be honest, the storyline can seem confusing, but in the end it all makes sense. We are shown a terrible tragedy and the strange affect it has on a mother.
Nothing is as it seems throughout the book, making it difficult to follow sometimes, but that is really the beauty of the story - coming to realize what is happening and why. I think this is the kind of book, even though it is very short, that could lead to some very interesting discussions.
I would recommend to those who like something different. There is the element of ghosts in the story, but it works.
I received a copy of the book in exchange for doing a review.
Nothing is as it seems throughout the book, making it difficult to follow sometimes, but that is really the beauty of the story - coming to realize what is happening and why. I think this is the kind of book, even though it is very short, that could lead to some very interesting discussions.
I would recommend to those who like something different. There is the element of ghosts in the story, but it works.
I received a copy of the book in exchange for doing a review.
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review