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The Cure for Death by Lightning cover

The Cure for Death by Lightning

Gail Anderson-Dargatz

0

awards won

3

score

#4789 of 8,085 books · #736 in Historical Fiction

Shortlisted for the Giller Prize (1996).

Gail Anderson-Dargatz's story takes place against the backdrop of daily life on a farm in remote Turtle Valley, British Columbia, during World War II. Beth Weeks is fifteen years old and lives with her family. Strange things are happening: a classmate of Beth's is mauled to death; children go missing on a nearby reservation; and Beth herself is being hunted by an unseen predator. The valley is home to a host of eccentric but familiar characters - Nora, an Indian girl in whose friendship Beth takes refuge; Filthy Billy, the hired hand who is thought to be possessed; Nora's mother, who has a man's voice and an extra little finger; and Beth's haunted mother. Her recipes are laced throughout the novel, giving us luscious descriptions of food, gardening, fruit picking and preserving, and remedies, both practical and bizarre ("The Cure for Death by Lightning: Dunk the dead by lightning in a cold water bath for two hours and if still dead, add vinegar").

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Publisher
A.A. Knopf
ISBN-13
9780395771846
Topics
Coming of ageFamily and rural life during WWIIMystery and the supernatural

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