Defying Gravity has a special place reserved on personal bookshelf
by JUDY LANE
The Herald Book Club Reviews
The Lethbridge Herald - Saturday June 17, 2000
I know I'll read this book again and that it will retain a permanent space in my personal library.
The first sentence succeeded in grabbing my interest - "I was holding Maligne Lake and a Jasper gondola when it happened." It was going to be an interesting read, I thought, because the events were happening in our own province.
Webber continued making me feel comfortable with the setting in the first chapter. Her description of Jasper had me reflecting on my visit there and recalling the marmots that ran about my feet.
And through an interesting and unique beginning, the story continued to unfold, taking me on a memorable trip, not only through British Columbia, but through the lives of many characters along the way.
Miranda Tyler is a TV newswoman from Edmonton who has begun her holidays with fiancé Turner. There is no slow beginning to this novel - the plot begins unraveling from the very first page and continues to drop mysterious threads throughout the story.
From Turner's disappearance from the gift shop in Jasper to Miranda's unusual meeting with a mysterious young guide named Indrin, the storyline gains momentum and continues to keep us moving as the characters travel through B.C. making some very important stops along the way.
We meet Fr. Albert Lowery in Revelstoke and Edmond Rebero, a Rwandan refugee who is searching for his missing brother; Miranda and Indrin assist Rebero in his quest. The events along the way keep you reading and moving along as each page offers more intrigue and interest until you return with Miranda to Jasper and begin to understand her writing of each and every postcard.
First-time novelist Webber writes an outstanding story. It's a story that stirs all your emotions and has you questioning why certain things happen to certain people.
Her characters are strong and realistic. They reach peaks and dip into valleys just like each and every one of us do in real life.
Her plot is multi-climactic. When Webber wraps up one event, she already has another developing so that the reader is constantly looking to turn the page.
But the most appealing thing for me in this book is Webber's approach to Catholic rituals, symbolisms and traditions. By portraying her main character as an agnostic, she taps my interest in many areas and has me questioning many of my beliefs as an "accepting through rote" rather than a "questioning Catholic." I very much appreciated her talented writing ability in being able to do so.
Everything about this book makes it a MUST READ for your summer book list. Jennifer Webber is a very talented writer who has excelled in this, her first novel. Pick it up and read it. I know you won't be disappointed.
Good for you, Jennifer Webber; your first novel is a big hit
by JANET GROENEWEG
The Herald Book Club Reviews
The Lethbridge Herald - Saturday June 17, 2000
As Miranda began to confide in me at the beginning of this, I felt an immediate warmth toward the story and character. I chuckled as she related an incident from her holiday with boyfriend Turner, that began her holiday. Her clumsiness and humour were immediately appealing. I wondered what would come next.
Having time to think about this story, I realized just how unique and special it was.
The reader has a personal part as Miranda continues her vacation and travels to Revelstoke, Kamloops and down the Coquihalla Highway to Vancouver.
On the way, Miranda meets Indrin and later on, Rebero, who travel with her to Vancouver. She visits with Father Lowrey and Jan in Revelstoke and learns about Fatima Marian Apparitions and many doomsday predictions.
The amazing characters, Indrin and Rebero, are her listeners, her inspirations, her incentive to change, to cope and to understand her plight, which is similar to the role the reader assumes.
The author uses the first person, narrative style and her own experience as a television reporter, writer, researcher and producer to create the character Miranda (Randi) Tyler, who struggles with her thoughts, memories and emotions as she completes her three-week holiday and returns to Jasper on her way back to Edmonton.
As the story ended, I was thinking "Good for you, Miranda," and "Good for you, Jennifer Webber."
You've written an exceptional book as your first novel.
Characterization gives Defying Gravity its power
by SCOTT SAKATCH
The Herald Book Club Reviews
The Lethbridge Herald - Saturday June 17, 2000
I'll start by saying Defying Gravity has neither a cohesive plot nor an obvious theme. But the characters!The story is told through the eyes of Miranda, the self-involved post-yuppie workaholic who doubts everything about herself. But just as interesting, if not more so, is Indrin, the young waiter-cum-seminary student who talks like a Zen Buddhist monk. Then there is Father Lowery the priest who finds himself inspired by Indrin's faith; Rebero, the Rwandan man who has seen far too much; even Lowrey's secretary, the aging chain-smoking female bodybuilder. Who needs a plot with a cast like that?
To be fair, I'm sure the author had a theme in mind - at first I thought Miranda would regain her faith. Then I thought it was a story about prophecy's place in the modern church. Then I figured it was about the horrors of genocide.
It's all and none of those. But I was caught up in the interaction between characters and the crisp dialogue. I'll admit I got bogged down a few times when Miranda would head off on a soul-searching jag but that could be simply a "Men Are From Mars" thing. Overall, I found Defying Gravity intriguing, sometimes amusing and surprisingly satisfying.