Meeting of the Waters: A Novel - Softcover

Mclarin, Kim

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0060505877 ISBN 13: 9780060505875

Publisher: Harper Perennial, 2002

Synopsis

Porter Stockman, a determined white reporter, is covering the riots in the streets of South Central Los Angeles for the Philadelphia Record on the day that four Los Angeles police officers are acquitted of assaulting Rodney King. When Lenora Page, a black woman, risks her own safety to come to his aid and then disappears into the chaos, Porter fears he'll never see her again. But weeks later their paths intersect once more when Lenora -- a prominent reporter for the Baltimore Sun -- accepts a job offer from his newspaper.

During the course of the next year, Porter fights to win the trust and love of the suspicious and deeply conflicted Lenora. As they become a couple, they are forced to reexamine their assumptions about race . . . as well as their own insecurities, assumptions, and deeply hidden -- but nevertheless powerful -- fears about their union.

Probing divided allegiances, split loyalties, and the pain of confronting one's own prejudice, this poignant novel presents an impassioned and bittersweet look at interracial love in America today.

About this title

About the Author:

Kim McLarin is a writer and former journalist for the New York Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, and the Associated Press. The author of the highly acclaimed novel Taming It Down, she has published her short fiction in Obsidian 11: Black Literature in Rerun; WV, and Confrontation. She lives near Boston, Massachusetts, with her husband and their family.

From Publishers Weekly:

The issues of biracial marriage and racial bigotry are explored with potent insight and literary skill in McLarin's second novel (after Taming It Down). During the explosive aftermath of Rodney King's police assailants' trial in L.A., veteran reporter Porter Stockman was attacked and almost beaten to death by rioters. Now back home in Philadelphia, Porter is elated to reencounter Lenora "Lee" Page, a black woman who saved his life. Coincidentally, Lee, also a seasoned journalist, has just accepted a job on the Record, Porter's paper. Though they are both well aware of the cultural prejudices against biracial relationships, Porter passionately woos Lee while she struggles with a lifelong determination to fraternize solely with members of her own race. Eventually, she overcomes her misgivings, and joyously (but at Lee's insistence, secretly) they become lovers. When Lee's best friend pays her a surprise visit and meets Porter, however, Lee must try to justify her shift. And Porter, made uneasy by Lee's preoccupation with race, questions his own vaunted belief in equality. McLarin pulls no punches in her candid portrayal of the conflicts that often occur when conscientious adults examine assumptions each race makes about the other, and when they acknowledge, even against their will, the existence of solid barriers separating racial groups. Strong characterization lifts the narrative far above stereotype. Porter and Lee are a pair of personable and tortured lovers who reflect their unique pasts in psychologically nuanced portrayals. Their story may be a cautionary tale for those who would pit individuality against group identity. Primarily, though, this is a gripping novel about love and the obstacles it encounters even in so-called enlightened society.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Harper Perennial
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0060505877
• ISBN 13: 9780060505875
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 352