The Oracle and the Pearl

by Nikki Pison

It is the middle of the Fourteenth Century in the land that would someday become known as Romania. The Black Plague has ended, but warring tribes and competing monarchies fight over the territory. A young girl is orphaned and adopted by a traveling band of Roma blacksmiths. The People are kind to the girl, but she has many trials ahead. In betraying those who have cared for her, she fulfills a destiny for herself and many others, but at great personal sacrifice. The Oracle and the Pearl is a tale that is filled with reverence for the unknowable mysteries of the grand design connecting all life. As one purpose is fulfilled, the fate of others is revealed. The story is told by Jaelle, who struggles to see how a woman with no identity can fit into a world that is not always generous to those who do not conform. In her lyrically winding narrative, we hear the eternal question of whether any of us chooses our own path, or if we can only go in the direction determined by our unique character existing in a point in time.

293 pages, Paperback

Published April 2, 2021

Reviews

[Road Worrier · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book, and the source material for the book makes it even more fun... to imagine that this may be a historical account which happens to include communication via trees, speaking with the dead and asking mushrooms to teach.

I enjoyed the unpredictability of the book due to its place as a remembered history, rather than a plot to move the characters from here to there. I remember listening on NPR to Ocean Vuong describing their autobiographical book "On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous" and appreciating that the book was a selection of passages. Sometimes the "plot" is a character of its own in a book, but in Ocean's book and in Pison's book, I felt that there wasn't a need for such a contrivance. That's not to say this book feels like a bunch of fragments... it doesn't, it feels like a coherent whole.

This book is interesting and could be a biography, but with examinations of sexism and prejudice, and explorations into the unseen parts of the world along the way. I like it when authors understand people and their motivations, and aside from the one villain, we got to see a lot about people... and goats.

[Faith Barr · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was such a wonderful journey. With so many lessons, like really trusting your inner deep & quiet whisperings, despite surrounding customs, this was a learning voyage of a reading experience for me. I loved it and would definitely like to read more by this author.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heartwarming and rending in equal measure

Love Jaelle and her companions and the journeys they are all on. Life in all its messy uncertainty and joyous synchronicities.

[Jeremy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simple and direct writing, and even the most minor characters seem fully realized and three dimensional. A great story that feels authentic and contemporary