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The Extraordinary Journey of Vivienne Marshall

Review

The Extraordinary Journey of Vivienne Marshall

Following the acclaimed METHOD 15/33, Shannon Kirk sheds her thriller threads and dons a chimeric cloak in this sentence-long title. Without being overtly religious or inspirational, Kirk captures a phantasmagoric vision.

At age 35 in Boston, publishing editor Vivienne Marshall “zombie-walked in front of a truck.” Drifting in and out of this realm, she meets soulmate Noah, who had died years before. He gives her options for “creating your Heaven.” But her transplanted Deep South (“where an alligator is a pet”) hospital ICU nurse, Marty, assures Vivienne that the angels haven’t come for her. Yet.

"THE EXTRAORDINARY JOURNEY OF VIVIENNE MARSHALL is sheer poetry, a book to read many times. Or give to friends as an extraordinary gift."

Reality of the “white hell in my hospital room” melds with surreal visits to other people’s heavens. Vivienne may extrapolate one feature from each individual heaven (where “Van Gogh paints the sky every night”) to construct her own future nest, sort of like visiting a celestial home furnishings emporium. But kid-in-a-candy-store choices aren’t easy, electing only one item from each location. (This trailer depicts some of her difficult selections.)

A river runs through the World of Heavens. Detritus from that stream is stored in a museum, from which Vivienne may also make choices. This serves, however, only to confound. “But would these items be real or replicas? Do I want a mirage of Heaven? Will fabrications satisfy my eternity?”

Two others compound Vivienne’s choice-making. Her former high school friend, Jack, and the issue from their one-time tryst, Ivan, visit her in the hospital --- often while Vivienne is visiting various heavens. She is left with one final choice. “I am furious to end the end and begin the beginning.”

There’s an extraordinary metaphor, for those who read between the lines. We don’t have to walk in front of a truck to choose positive aspects from other people’s heavens. We can select samples from the living that enhance our lives long before a truck runs us down, and enrich our heavens on earth.

Ceaseless hope and the importance of letting go of life --- and the things that complicate it --- are key to this uplifting tale. One word in the title says it all: Extraordinary. THE EXTRAORDINARY JOURNEY OF VIVIENNE MARSHALL is sheer poetry, a book to read many times. Or give to friends as an extraordinary gift.

Reviewed by L. Dean Murphy on September 9, 2016

The Extraordinary Journey of Vivienne Marshall
by Shannon Kirk

  • Publication Date: September 6, 2016
  • Genres: Fiction
  • Paperback: 310 pages
  • Publisher: Reputation Books
  • ISBN-10: 1944387080
  • ISBN-13: 9781944387082