Finding the Centre

The namelessness of the city in this lyrical novel remains a problem

When drought reduces her village to abject poverty, 14-year-old Isabel finds that her entire universe changes. It is not just that food is scarce and her world gets divided into 8220;categories of things that could and could not be eaten8221;. The drought also drives her brother Isaias away from her. And for Isabel there is no greater loss. Born with a special gift, she can 8220;see farther8221; and has the uncanny ability to feel her brother wherever he is. But when Isaias goes off into the city in search of a better life to follow his dream of being a musician, Isabel loses sight of him. The story of A Far Country is the story of the search Isabel undertakes. Her brother is more than just her brother, he is the most special person in her life, her mentor, her other half.

Soon war, drought and utter want force her to head into the city to join her brother. But once she gets to her cousin Manuela she finds that Isaias has been missing for several months. And for the first time her ability to 8220;see farther8221; eludes her. It is not until she finds her bearing that she finds her brother. Her search for him runs parallel to her search for herself. She hides indoors, looks after her cousin8217;s baby, works weekends, wanders the city, encounters danger and willy nilly learns to fend for herself in a place where violence and corruption are the norm. She also makes friends. Finds the strength to scream 8212; albeit internally 8212; against cruelty. But most of all Isabel learns survival. And that8217;s when she finds her brother 8212; her peace and her centre.

Written in the wonderfully lyrical prose that made Mason8217;s first novel The Piano Tuner a huge success, A Far Country has the same visual, descriptive quality to it. The bond between the brother and sister has an almost a religious purity about it. And there is a strong spirituality to the book.

But it is the same qualities that made his first novel a success that impede his second. Mason is an easy read. The writing is nearly translucent and you never have to struggle through the story or the context. But it is this ease that also works against it. There is too much of an even keel right through. All incidents 8212; death of her uncle, losing her cousin8217;s baby, confronting greed, the search of her beloved brother, her obsession with her sibling 8212; are treated with the same level of emotion. Even her romance, though beautifully illustrative, lacks heart. There is never a moment of raging passion or consuming love. Every thing is beautifully depicted and yet it passes over you without ever searing you with its flame. Also, in fiction, there is no rule that a story must be rooted in a real place. But in this case it is perhaps the other inherent flaw in the story line. While it is clear that Mason8217;s novel is set between Brazil and Mexico, the lack of a reference to context really impedes your progress. It also leaves the characters with a critical dimension missing.

So is A Far Country a worthy successor to The Piano Tuner? In all honesty the answer must be no. Perhaps it helped that during his first time Mason was a medical student 8212; doing both writing and research. His first effort was a precise book. The second is always slightly off the mark. Slightly8230; but significantly. And that8217;s all it takes to make a difference.