In the Shadow of the Ark

Grade 11 Up–This novel has a biblical backdrop, but unfortunately, the passage in which it is grounded (Genesis 7:11) is better than the story this author works too hard to create. "In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of the heaven were opened." Provoost relates the well-known story about the building and sailing of Noah's ark, but the pacing is slow, the characters are simplistic and undeveloped, and the prose is uneven and wordy. Re Jana, an outsider due to her race and background, is the daughter of a shipbuilder seeking work, and upon arriving at Noah's shipyard with her family, she meets Ham, a privileged son of the Great Builder (Noah). Their love is built on their sexual attraction, and they work hard for Re Jana and her father to become "chosen by the Unnameable" (the Christian term for God) to board the ark in an effort to escape the impending and life-threatening downpour. The writing is adult in tone and sensibility, and few teens will be engaged enough to grapple with the philosophical concerns it raises about who is chosen and who is left behind. In the end, this book should remain "in [a] shadow."–Kelly Berner Richards, St. George's School, Newport, RI
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Gr. 10-up. In the tradition of the adult novel The Red Tent comes this story of the biblical Flood, recounted by Re Jana, whose family leaves the marshes to find the ark. The passion Re Jana finds with Ham, son of the Builder, leads to a place on the ark, but this "safe haven," with the stink and sounds of the animals, starvation, and repeated (if not lustful) rapes by Ham's brothers, tests her in every way, even as she carries new life into the New World. Exquisitely detailed and intelligently written, this is a YA novel only in the broadest sense; no one would blink if it appeared on an adult list. Teens will find themselves alternately caught up in the story's tension, especially once the rain starts falling, and bored by some of the religious and philosophical underpinnings. There are subtly portrayed sexual incidents, too (including a relationship between Re Jana and Ham's wife) but these are small stitches in a vast piece that strikingly reveals the human condition at the hour of its destruction. Ilene Cooper
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