Inland by Tea Obreht
Hachette, 2019. ISBN: 9780297867074.
(Age: 16+) Highly recommended. Themes: Historical fiction, Survival,
Drought, Cameleers, Ghosts, Trust, Relationships. Set in the harsh
drought ridden country of 1890's southwest America, Obrecht's Inland
tells two stories that gradually draw closer together, both set in
harsh inhospitable environments, with people struggling to make an
existence, dealing with loneliness and ghosts of people dead.
Outlaw, Lurie, described as a 'hirsute Levantine' on the wanted
posters, travels for a while with a band of cameleers attached to a
US military expedition into the desert but pursuit by the relentless
Marshal Berger sees him once again finding his own way, but this
time with a strange companion for whom he feels a growing
attachment.
The other story is one day in the life of homesteader Nora. With her
husband gone to find water, and her two adult sons disappearing
early in the morning, she is left with her anxious child Toby, a
wheelchair-bound mother-in-law, and young helpmate, Josie, who
communicates with the spirit world. With only the last dregs of
water to contend with the scorching heat, Nora has to stand guard
against hostile outsiders, and now, a phantom wild beast that has
put fear into Josie and Toby.
Both Lurie and Nora are tough individuals each dealing with ghosts
of the past. For Lurie it is past companions he continues to see and
who infect him with their needs; for Nora it is the ghost of her
daughter, dead from heat stroke many years ago. Both have to contend
with loneliness, hardship, and distrust of others. Their stories are
a journey of self-enlightenment and exploration of the human need
for trust and companionship. The reader is drawn into the two
stories, wondering how they will eventually come together. The twist
at the end makes for an unforgettable ending.
It is a panoramic novel, each chapter written with a different
voice, the language rich and poetic, evoking another time and place.
It has many of the elements of the American western but is highly
original in weaving in the little known history of the U.S. Camel
Cavalry Corp, and the mix of Middle Eastern migrants, Mexicans, and
Indians. It is a good reminder that America, like Australia, has
always been a multicultural mix of people.
Helen Eddy