The Visionist

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I got a lot of other things, instead. The story is ok, though I never bought into it which is probably why I didn't enjoy it as much as others have. I think I was expecting more The Scarlet Letter and less melodrama. Polly who flees the far Hahaha! Polly who flees the farm with her mother and brother to live amongst: PLUS Charity whose story looks like this: PLUS Simon though not as smart, only as arrogant. His story looks like this: He probably should have been described more as a dandy, right? And the disapproving Shaker eldress Mix those all together and that's what the story looked like to me.

In , in a Shaker community in Massachusetts, Polly and her brother Ben are brought there by their mother, who then leaves. Polly and her family had suffered mightily at the hands of their abusive father. I knew very little about this religion and the novel does a wonderful job describing their beliefs, men and woman live apart, no carnal knowledge allowed their clothing, their food and the jobs they do to keep the community running.

Sister Charity is the one assigned to show and teach Polly In , in a Shaker community in Massachusetts, Polly and her brother Ben are brought there by their mother, who then leaves. Sister Charity is the one assigned to show and teach Polly what she needs to know about this community. Polly soon assumes an important part as she see and feels angels, she becomes a revered Visionist. Of course she has left behind a big secret and Pryor, a man is investigating a crime that she and her family are trying to escape. So much of this novel was entertaining.

Also the story never raised its tone, it basically stayed the same even when Pryor was closing in on the truth and Polly's baptism as a Visionist drew more attention to the community than she wanted. Interesting book and a good look at a little known religion. View all 5 comments. Sep 08, Louise rated it it was ok.

Most people will know I've struggled through this one. I'm not sure why the story itself was ok. It was very descriptive which I do tend to like but it on this occasion I found it distracting from the story and also the issues such as sin, forgiveness, which weren't deeply explored.

Starting from a point of knowing the story before the investigator trying to uncover it was frustrating and I struggled to warn to any of the characters. Shakers, the Shaking Quakers because of their ecstatic behavior during worship services , a lesser known branch off, though very intriguing as far as religious sects go. Nearly cult like in its aspects From the downright silly cutting food into squares instead of triangles, bowlcuts for men to WTF no inside pets to downright self exterminating no sex , this wasn't a situation build to last.

And in fact Shakers, the Shaking Quakers because of their ecstatic behavior during worship services , a lesser known branch off, though very intriguing as far as religious sects go. And in fact it didn't, it died out, according to Wikipedia there's only one surviving Shaker village left. And yet there's also something to be said for the fact that Shakers gave leadership roles to women at the time when no one did some still struggle with that, recent study places US at worldwide for the number of women in the government , , well under many third world countries even , when being a woman was a now unthinkable tribulation.

In fact so much so that joining Shakers was actually a viable option to a life of privation and spousal abuse and sex mustn't have been that difficult to give up when it was very likely to end in death in childbirth. And so it is into Shaker's community that a much abused wife takes her two children, after fleeing her home and her violent sorry excuse of a husband.

Turns out that the land they fled actually has some worth, an investigator gets involved and so the plot is set into motion. The narrative follows Polly, the woman's daughter, Sister Charity, the young Shaker who befriends her and Simon Pryor, the investigator. To her credit, Urquhart manages to give her protagonists singular voices and personalities, so that the reader gets a well rounded perspective.

Polly, looking for peace and hope in the appropriately named City of Hope, Sister Charity looking for the purest embodiment of her faith, The Visionist Polly is taken for one upon arrival , Simon looking for truth, but also undergoing a personal redemptive journey. This is a fairly straight forward story with the profoundly complex characters. An exploration of faith, friendship and love. Urquhart's language has a dreamlike quality, almost hypnotic, her sentences are a thing of beauty.

The novel is a slow read and was probably meant as such, but it is compelling and most auspicious for a debut novel, albeit one that took ten years to get out and so had plenty of time to bake to near perfection. Enjoyable read, interesting, enlightening. Works both as a drama and as a work of historical fiction.

The Visionist

Feb 24, Deborah rated it it was amazing. In the 's my husband, a real estate broker, took me to a location in rural Massachusetts that had been a Shaker community. It was on a beautiful landscape of rolling hills and stream with a vast expanse of sky. The property was on the market for such a reasonable price I was shocked.

The buildings left were stark and eerie in their vastness and simplicity. There was a barn and a main building. A lone sheep made its way across a narrow stream. We went into the "main" building made of weathere In the 's my husband, a real estate broker, took me to a location in rural Massachusetts that had been a Shaker community.

We went into the "main" building made of weathered blue wood. It was huge and had an echoing emptiness to it. The place felt haunted. It was about three stories tall, but it seemed to reach to the sky. I had a strange feeling about the whole place, as if people were watching us. Beautiful as the entire package seemed, it was ghostly. Rachel Urquhart has written a book that has made the Shakers come alive. I've always had a fascination with them and their seemingly ethereal religious lives.

They have seemed ghostly, as well, in their unattainable ways. In a lifestyle not quite Quaker and perhaps far from Amish, the Shakers seemed even more set apart to me than other splinter religions.

In this novel I've had a glimpse of what their lives might have been like and it is magical in Urquhart's hands. The storyline is rich and interesting primarily featuring Polly, a girl who has escaped an abusive father by murdering him only to find shelter with the Shakers who believe she is a "visionist," one especially selected to have spiritual insights and messages. We also follow another character's crime procedural as he ferrets out Polly's secret.

And, finally, we are brought into the mind of the Shaker sister who takes Polly into her heart and takes us into the intimacy of the community. The three narrations carry the novel adding depth to the story. Ms Urquhart is an author with strong talents. It's hard to believe this is a debut novel. Her literary voice is mature, her vision exotic and her story will touch your heart. The world of the Shakers is unveiled and the lives of her characters evolve like a well-spring.

This is one of those books you have to read this year. I can't say enough about it! View all 3 comments. Nov 23, Maria rated it liked it. This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. This was not an easy read. Though I got the gist of the story in the end I'm left with a hazy impression of its conclusion. The climax was leading towards a happy reunion of the Kimball family and a satisfying defeat of the greedy land grabbers in play. I was waiting for the "in your face" moment when Sister Agnes realizes she went after the wrong sibling to secure her end; a vindication of Polly in Charity's eyes; and satisfaction for Simon who was unhappy with his forced walk on the unsavory s This was not an easy read.

I was waiting for the "in your face" moment when Sister Agnes realizes she went after the wrong sibling to secure her end; a vindication of Polly in Charity's eyes; and satisfaction for Simon who was unhappy with his forced walk on the unsavory side of justice. I got none of these.

See a Problem?

No Kimball happy reunion. No satisfying defeat of the villains in the story. No vindication for Polly or Simon. I'm not even sure if the rightful owner of the Kimball farm was ever revealed by Simon or Tsak, or the that May was ever informed that Benjamin's birth was documented by Peeles. Instead, we are slapped with an ill-fitted foreshadowing of an unexpected, creepy, and one-sided romance.

The most interesting thing about the book was the setting and the promise of a great thriller that unfortunately for me, did not fulfill its charge. Jul 02, Cheryl rated it really liked it Shelves: The story is told through the eyes of its three main characters. Polly is a fifteen year old girl who has fled a life of abuse and degradation. She finds refuge, acceptance, and friendship in the Shaker community. Sister Charity is a devoted Shaker who has lived in the City of Hope since she was left there as a baby. Her unfailing faith, and her friendship with Polly are tested when a hidden secret comes to light.

Simon Pryor is an arson investigator who must try to interview Polly to determine her involvement in a crime.

January 2014

Simon's young life holds many secrets of its own. Their lives become intertwined in an unforgettable story of fanatical faith, greed, mystery, resilience, rebirth, and hope. Jan 27, Jane Ciabattari rated it it was amazing. Reminds me what a joy it is to read a GOOD first novel! Here's my review for NPR: Polly Kimball has had a difficult childhood. An abusive, alcoholic father, a tired mother and a young brother who is her responsibility. Just once she took her eyes off him and went to complete a chore and it nearly ended in tragedy. There she leaves the two children where they will be safe and disappears.

Polly is then separated from her brother Ben by the religious beliefs — those who adopt the religion must forsake all blood relation. They are all sisters, they are all brothers. But male-female interaction is not permitted among the Shakers without an escort and Polly does not even get to speak to Ben. She knows he must be upset and confused — he is not like other boys.

He is different and he needs gentle handling. She hopes that the Brothers know that. Polly has secrets to hide from this community, big secrets. They believe she is a vessel sent to speak the words and wishes of Mother Ann and this subjects her to heavy scrutiny and pressure. Polly knows that eventually they will discover her secrets and judge her despite the protection of Charity, a young Sister. Simon Pryor is a fire inspector hired to investigate the situation surrounding the fire on the Kimball farm and for him, it is an opportunity to free himself from tyranny and also, redemption.

He is unable to talk to Polly without her mother as appropriate escort and May Kimball has disappeared. There are others who wish to find May first, to get their hands on what she has that could thwart efforts to get the Kimball farm. Simon needs to find her first, for the sake of not only the whole Kimball family but also himself. This book is quite a hard one to review. On one hand, the writing is very good. She has faced unspeakable things in her fifteen years, been subjected to truly horrible acts to go with her day to day existence of work, poverty and abuse.

She finds herself abandoned to the Shaker community, something she knows nothing about. She has to basically ignore her brother, which causes her enormous emotional distress and the added pressure of the tag of being a Visionist, a vessel is also stressful because she eventually knows that it cannot last. Before becoming a true Shaker, you must confess to an elder and adopt their ways.

They believe that they need him because of what he will possess and to keep him within their fold, at least until he turns 18 but preferably permanently, is a must. After all, they have to eat and have the ability to make their goods to sell. Their worldly possessions as an individual are nothing but they are well fed and well clothed and they do not live in poverty.

And for that to occur, they have to make smart decisions and occasionally ruthless ones. However despite of this, there are times a lot of times when the story really lags.

Debut Novel Offers Surprisingly Dark 'Vision' Of Shaker Life

It takes a very long time for everything to come together and because of this, the ending which is filled with the most action and information, feels rushed. What I cared about were May, Polly and Ben getting what was theirs and hopefully being reunited to try and move on with their lives. Simon was at times, merely a distraction from the story I wanted to read. And so I am confused about this one.

In parts it was really quite good and I found the Shaker movement interesting enough to google it and find out a bit more information. Most of my information came after I finished reading it. Dec 01, Janice rated it really liked it Shelves: This debut novel is so well written, and I was totally captivated with the characters and the story.

Set in , the story revolves around a young teenage girl and her family after she and her much younger brother are taken to a Shaker community for refuge and safety. The family is in crisis, and Polly, the young girl, is especially troubled, torn between the goodness she finds in many ways in this Shaker village, the repression she also feels in this place, and anxiety over her mother and the This debut novel is so well written, and I was totally captivated with the characters and the story. Shakers were required to forsake blood family attachments and carnal relations for a celibate life in which brethren and sisters never touched.

She shares a room with her first friend, Sister Charity, who teaches her the hard-working Shaker ways.

During her first Sabbath meeting, Polly experiences a hallucinatory episode described by Sister Charity: The Visionist is Rachel Urquhart's first novel. Others in Polly's new Shaker community proclaim her a Visionist. Urquhart explores this question, building suspense through two other major characters. Elder Sister Agnes, now head of the City of Hope, suspects there is more to Polly's life and visions than the young woman is willing to confess to her.

Simon Pryor, a local man investigating the fire Polly set, adds his own interpretation of events as Polly is threatened by further tragedy. Urquhart captures in exquisite detail the cruel demands of grueling poverty in s New England, and, by contrast, the orderly Shaker community. The too-convenient changes in Polly also mirror a broader trend within the novel as a whole.

Much of the narrative relies heavily on coincidence and easy parallel. Pryor, in particular, explicitly refers to the connection between his life and that of the Kimballs more often than feels organic, in such lines as: Still, those hints of serendipity, though frustrating from a narrative perspective, also play nicely into the novel's themes of destiny and the complexity of defining one's own faith or lack thereof. Elder Sister Agnes, a matriarchal Believer in The City of Hope, is perhaps the character that best captures the dualities with which the protagonists struggle.

Having cared tenderly for Sister Charity from birth, she represents the difficulty of interpersonal love within a society where all individuals must be equal and love can come only from union with every other. And as a devout Shaker, Elder Sister Agnes wishes to believe in Polly's validity as a Visionist, and yet she cannot keep from doubting her.

Elder Sister Agnes seems to embody the question that each of the protagonists faces in his or her own way: How does one match one's actions to one's beliefs? How does one lead a life that embraces them all? I see nothing in a clear light anymore, feel nothing without also suffering the awareness of its opposite.

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