December 4, 2008
The Moon in the Mango Tree
Rebecca’s marriage to Harvey Perkins means the sacrifice of a promising career as an opera singer. But love wins out…after all, she’s still young—there’s plenty of time for dreams.
But Harvey’s career takes them to the Siamese jungles of Nan, where the young bride exists in conditions primitive beyond her imagination, even delivering her first child in the foreign land she comes to despise. Her journey takes her from Nan back to America, then back again to Bangkok, where she eventually comes to yearn for the dream she abandoned. In an odyssey of self-exploration, Rebecca leaves behind all that she holds dear as her quest for fulfillment takes her to Paris and Rome, where her long-held aspiration is at last within reach.
But of course the time comes when she must make a decision. Will she give up her own career yet again to be Harvey’s wife and a mother to her children? Should she?
An unforgettable story about a very real woman with all-too-human flaws. A woman who desires more than what she holds in her hands, at a time when women were expected to be completely satisfied with a home and a family. The author laces in geographical and historical facts and tidbits, giving this entertaining and touching book the added dimension of becoming a fascinating learning experience. It’s a spiritual, emotional and intellectual journey peopled with well-rounded, three-dimensional characters so real that “the end” becomes a wrenching good-bye.
The Moon in the Mango Tree is well-written, thought-provoking, absolutely unforgettable writing. I look forward to seeing more from Pamela Binnings Ewen.
Reviewed by Delia Latham
