The Cure for Death by Lightning
ISBN 0-394-28157-8 | | |
The Cure for Death by Lightning is the debut novel from Canadian author Gail Anderson-Dargatz. It was nominated for the Giller Prize, was awarded the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize, and became a bestseller in Canada (selling over 100,000 copies) and Great Britain (where it won a Betty Trask Award).[1]
Plot introduction
Set in an isolated farming community in
tourettes and Nora, a sensual half-Native girl whose mother has an extra little finger
and a man's voice.
The title of the book comes from one of a number of household tips and recipes belonging to her mother which appear as asides throughout the book, while Beth's mother withdraws from reality and talks with her dead mother; leaving Beth to be sexually molested by her father.
Reception
- The Boston Sunday Globe described how, "some first novelists tiptoe. Not Gail Anderson-Dargatz. She makes her debut in full stride, confidently breaking the rules to create a fictional style we might call Pacific Northwest Gothic."[4]
- Canadian Literature quarterly criticizes the "somewhat ponderous plot" but praises the "acuteness of vision" and "sharp rendition of the breathless, sensate moment" as the "magic in the ordinary" is revealed.[5]
References
- ^ http://www.randomhouse.ca/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780307363886 [dead link]
- ^ "Interview with Jack Hodgins - Canadian Literature - Fiction - Short Stories - Novels".
- ^ "Books at Random House of Canada | The Cure For Death by Lightning by Gail Anderson-Dargatz". www.randomhouse.ca. Archived from the original on 2006-05-27.
- ^ "Gail Anderson-Dargatz". www.randomhouse.ca. Archived from the original on 2003-06-09.
- ^ "Book Review | the Cure for Death by Lightning by Gail Anderson-Dargatz; the Lusty Man by Terry Griggs | Canadian Literature". Archived from the original on 2013-01-15. Retrieved 2012-06-03.