Raven Stole the Moon

Jenna's son is gone, and in her rational mind she knows it's true. But the ...way... he died, the things she ...saw... as it happened, she can't quell the sense that he's still alive...somewhere. I heard that Garth Stein is part Tlingit, (on his grandmother's side), and if it's true it'd go a long way toward explaining the unusual mood and coloring of this original and chilling novel. From the beginning, there is a sense of foreboding, and the rich imagery and character drama that follow only work to increase it. The story is psychological - disturbs but still leaves you hopeful; plumbs your realities and then asks you to go deeper; but never goes so far as to betray your trust. For me, as Jenna probed deeper and the world I knew began to waver and fade to nothing, I wasn't all that happy with her choices. It was way too late to stop reading, though. And when I realized that if she succeeded in spanning the void to some other place and I might be forced to face whatever she found, I willed her to turn around and stop. She didn't. Let me just say this: there are some utterly terrifying images and situations in this novel. If you enjoy good character drama, this one has plenty, or if you ever imagined being caught in a tight, and I mean REALLY tight, dark, very earthy place, "Raven Stole the Moon" is sure to lift your hair for you.

Reading about odd, otter-like creatures with black eyes and crooked, brown teeth who travel between spiritual realms and change into human forms was not exactly what I had on my weekly agenda. I'd never heard of the kushtaka, nor the Tlingit Indians of Alaska, and I wasn't sure about shamans, shape-shifters, or the Land of Dead Souls. But I did feel privileged to have been asked to review Raven Stole the Moon by Garth Stein, author of the NY Times bestseller, The Art of Racing in the Rain, so I opened my mind--and the book. Raven Stole the Moon was the author's debut novel, published in 1998, which is now being re-released by HarperCollins. Even the best of marriages would suffer tremendously from the death of a young child. Raven Stole the Moon is the story of a married couple, Jenna and Robert, bereaved parents who lost their young son, Bobby, in a drowning accident at Thunder Bay in Alaska. "She had sworn never to set foot in the state of Alaska again. Two years ago, as she flew away from the place where her heart had been ripped from her body. Where her very soul had been crushed. Where her spirit had drowned with her baby. She swore she would never go again." ~Raven Stole the Moon, Garth Stein Although Jenna had resolved to never return to Alaska, she finds herself leaving her husband and home in Seattle and boarding the ferry, which takes her from Bellingham, Washington to the town of Wrangell, Alaska, home of her long deceased grandmother. (A ferry to Alaska! I was ready to board the Columbia--what an exciting trip that would be! Everyone camps out for a few days on the ship, tries to stay warm, and attempts to sleep comfortably. It would surely be an adventure.) Still grieving and feeling unsettled about her marriage, Jenna is mysteriously drawn back to Alaska, and her trip becomes a quest for answers which surround the mystery and horror of her son's death. Jenna befriends a dog, Oscar, and rents a room from a local fisherman, Eddie, and soon enters into a world which features the supernatural, menacing shape-shifting spirits, the kushtaka, of Tlingit myth and legend. Garth Stein's first book brought to mind the work of Stephen King, mainly because of the magical realism. Along with Jenna and other characters, I gradually suspended my disbelief and doubts, and considered the possibility that reality may be more supernatural, strange, and unknowable than previously thought. The author's great-grandmother was a full-blooded Tlingit, and he learned about the Indian legends by reading and listening to the stories his uncles and aunts told around campfires. Garth Stein adeptly weaves these magical elements into a refreshingly original, gripping, and moving story. Raven Stole the Moon is also about relationships, about the bonds between husbands and wives, mothers and sons, and grandmothers and granddaughters, which may last beyond physical death. The best stories touch me, and I wept near the end of this one.

Garth Stein's haunting tale of such spiritual depth is an amazing reading experience. He takes us on a journey that is gripping and thought provoking. The author is a talented story teller, with a "voice" that "speaks" to you, as he weaves a novel with unique characters. He literally places us in the Alaskan wilderness, surrounded by a landscape of supernatural spirits and symbols. A must read. Arlene Millman author of Boomerang-A Miracle Trilogy

Not since I read The Shining have I had the shivers running up and down my spine like I did with this book! An excellent thrill ride from beginning to end. Mr. Stein is a master craftsman when developing his characters, and I was amazed at his ability to shift from both the male and female perspective.

Two years ago in her hometown of Wrangell, Alaska, Jenna Rosen was helpless as her five year old son drowned. Unable to cope with her guilt any longer, she leaves her husband in Seattle and returns to her remote Alaskan village to confront her grief. However, instead of finding solace, Jenna hears rumors that her little boy's soul has been absorbed by the kushtaka, a half man-half otter. Only a powerful shaman can set the lad's soul free. Jenna is not sure whether she should believe in her Tlingit heritage, but decides that she cannot take a chance that her son's soul has been abducted. Jenna knows that she will need the professional help of a shaman to allow her son's soul to finally rest in peace and, perhaps, her own as well. RAVEN STOLE THE MOON is a powerful novel that brings alive the Tlingit animalistic-based belief system in a very interesting tale. This book is must reading for anyone intrigued by an alternate approach to describing how the universe ticks. However, instead of just a dry, social anthropological comparison, in the ingenious hands of Garth Stein, readers get a genuinely fascinating story. Harriet Klausner