Selkie

Martha Wilson is Canadian correspondent for the Japan Times (Tokyo) and
a Toronto-based freelance editor and writer.

In Anne Cameron’s latest novel, charming, whimsical situations unfold
like a series of connected dreams.

The central character, Cassidy, wakes up one clear morning to an indoor
rainstorm that doesn’t quit. Gradually, it becomes clear that the rain
is no mere plumbing problem; rather, it is linked to Cassidy’s violent
husband, and follows him from place to place. Dogged by this visible and
irrefutable evidence of his utter worthlessness, the husband goes to
pieces and ends up in jail. The liberated Cassidy embarks on a mission
of self-renewal, but a capsized boat interferes with her plans.
Shipwrecked on a deserted beach, she befriends a “selkie.” This
creature, half-woman and half-seal, helps Cassidy deal with a history of
abuse and pain.

Although this novel has many strengths, including vivid descriptions
and a dreamy, sensuous quality, it is marred by the author’s tendency
to state the obvious, and by her overuse of rhetorical questions. A
disappointingly random quality persists throughout. Cassidy’s
aimlessness seems at times a reflection of Cameron’s handling of
events in her novel, with a muzzy-headed intuitiveness standing in for
decisive action.