Gretchen B Phelps

Water Mask by Monica Devine Reviewed by Gretchen Brinck In Water Mask, Alaska writer Monica Devine opens with an apt T.S. Eliot quote: “I do not know much about gods/but I think that the river is a strong brown god.” This wonderful quotation is very fitting. The river in Devine’s world has a life of its own and plays a meaningful role in Devine’s days as well as being an essential source for those who live in her region of Alaska. Also, though writing prose, Devine’s vivid, rich but down to earth style reveals that her poet’s heart combines with that of a naturalist. Her descriptive, very readable scenes portray her Alaskan locale: its lifestyles, memories, rugged people, forested land, the river and a bit of her role as a teacher. In an early scene, Devine fishes from the riverbank, her baby boy in the backpack her husband made with care. Devine recalls an infant who fell from a mother’s backpack and drowned in the river’s frigid current. Sadly, Devine learned that local folklore among some residents in her town said the baby’s spirit will never be relieved. Thus, when fishing on the riverbank, Devine remained fully aware of her son on her back and the cold, rapid water near her feet. This is a woman who chose Alaska because she belongs there. Fishing, she considered her kids’ futures, expecting that they, like herself, would “ski and climb mountains, hike trails and raft rivers.” She’d chosen “a place where women could build their own houses and fly their own airplanes.” You go, girl! thinks this Lower 48 female reader. These ambitions reveal Devine’s interests, not only of her town and her profession. Devine also portrays deep conversations with local native Alaskan women – an excellent experience as it is not easy for an outsider from the Lower 48 to win true acceptance from locals who for generations have lived in their region. In later passages, Devine reflects upon fascinating thoughts of the area’s long-ago people and what she calls “Thin Places” where a person might sense spirits of recent and long ago dead. She writes (p.17): “If you were to dig below the tundra scrub in Point Hope, it is likely you would excavate artifacts like thousand-year-old sled runners made of whale bone, implements carved from walrus ivory, and sharp edged stone hunting tools….” These artifacts tell her, We existed In the rivers and tundra, the mountains and deltas, as spirits before our birth. Her fascinating narrative includes typical Alaskan experiences, for example, a bush pilot jury-rigging a repair of his small plane’s damaged tire and then transporting “exiled outlaws looking for a place to hide." This true tale portrays a woman's experiences in a region and life style not much known among "Lower 48" Americans. It is well worth reading.