Divisadero

Itisthe1970sinNorthernCalifornia.Afarmerandhisteenagedaughters,AnnaandClaire,workthelandwiththehelpofCoop,theenigmaticyoungmanwholiveswiththem.Theirsisamakeshiftfamily,untiltheyarerivenbyanincidentofviolence-ofbothhandandheart-that'setsfiretotherestoftheirlives'.Annawillcometorestinthecalminglandscapeofsouth-centralFrance.There,shedelvesintothestoryofawriterwho,decadesearlier,livedintheisolatedhouseshenowoccupies-astorythatcirclesaroundthe'rawtruth'ofherownlife,theoneshe'sleftbehindbutcannevertrulyleave.AndwhileAnna'sstoryliesattheheartofthenovel,thenarrativesweepsacrosstheterrainofthelivesofCoopandClaireaswell,eachofthemmanagingtofindsomefootholdinapresentrough-hewnfromthepast.Thisisastoryofpossessionandloss,abouttheoftendiscordantdemandsoffamily,love,andmemory.WritteninthesensuousproseforwhichMichaelOndaatje'sfictioniscelebrated,"Divisadero"istheworkofamasterstory-teller.