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Mercy Road

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From an astonishing new voice on the American literary landscape comes a powerful, haunting novel set against the harsh beauty of rural Vermont.  In Mercy Road Dalia Pagani exposes the soul of a wounded family, holding us captive under a spell of unforgettable characters in a mythic place.

On a rocky, windswept mountain ridge at the end of Mercy Road lives a family called Summer.  Earl and Darlene, trappers born to the ridge, rooted to the land, struggle to find hope and love in an unforgiving place.  Butch is their firstborn--with his father's brawn and his mother's tenderness, he would become his brother's keeper.  Then Sid, the strange, silent son, willed to live by his mother's fierce love.  And Tina, the only daughter, full of promise, but in whose heart beats her family's madness.

For the Summers, a difficult life comes apart one fall day when Darlene does the unthinkable, fleeing the ridge for a long, strange winter in New York.  In the wake of her flight, each of the Summers is driven, as if by the land itself, to make choices that will shape the rest of their lives.  

In the hands of a remarkable writer, Mercy Road becomes an epic drama of heroism and redemption, of the forces that bind us to the land that gave us roots, and of what is passed from generation to generation.  At once fierce and tender, raw and lyrical, Mercy Road is a riveting portrait of an unseen corner of the American landscape.

336 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1998

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About the author

Dalia Pagani

2 books2 followers

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5 stars
12 (24%)
4 stars
10 (20%)
3 stars
17 (34%)
2 stars
9 (18%)
1 star
1 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
Profile Image for desertmolly.
20 reviews
June 30, 2007
I have yet to meet one other person who has either read or heard of this amazing book..Noone among the goodreads crowd seems to be familiar with it, and I would love to change that. The book was given to me by a young woman I met while travelling through the South West. She said it was her favorite book and her only copy, but she wanted me to have it, beat up and torn as it was. Mercy Road seems to be the only book Pagani ever wrote and after I read it, I read it again. And again. It's a moody, haunting novel that takes place in rural Vermont and tells the story of a family wounded by fate and beaten by misfortune. The characters of this mythic place are strong and cold and desperate, seeking exceptance from one another but finding no peace. The tragic story, the cold atmosphere of the place, the desolation and desperation of the characters (and for all of you who hope for happy endings..this one doesn't end on a hopeful note.)won't leave the reader feeling upity, but I recommend Mercy Road to all real lifeaholics...and to anyone who appreciates excellent writing!
"Darlene would remember that year when Earl dug his first graves and made love to her every day. She had been out by the river in the village and watched the town folk gather by the cemetery.Earl was digging the grave that would hold the two bodies of Azubah and Henry Mercie, a drowned woman and a hanged man. One garve for the two bodies.She walked closer, saw Earl leaning into the long-handled spade, saw children tumbling in piles of leaves, heard dogs barking at nothing.The pastor was under the shade of the yellowing maples with his heavy book in hand. Deadening lilies by the old granite pillars. Clouds on the ridge." - Mercy Road,by Dalia Pagani
Profile Image for Ilya Welfeld.
38 reviews2 followers
July 18, 2021
Wish GoodReads allowed for half stars as I would increase the rating. I enjoyed the poetry of Mercy Road. I love 'ugly' and unpolished characters and Mercy Road serves up plenty. This is not a novel for those looking for a light escape. In fact, I often struggled to go to sleep after reading but there is a realness and rawness, despite a layer of fantasy - the type you see if you are looking for it. I was reminded of Snow Child, Uneducated, Middlemarch, The Girl from the Train, and Glass Castle. Mercy Road may have benefited from further editing, several words repeated too frequently (hardly a complaint, but some of the prose was so beautiful, it was easier to notice glitches) and while I love the grimy, respect the hopeless, welcome the pain- I would have liked a little more for/from Darlene to feel the journey we took with her was worth the while - but don't want to elaborate further and risk revealing much.
117 reviews
September 23, 2017
I liked this book, but it was very dark. It describes life in the hard scrabble outback of northern VT and how it takes its toll on the inhabitant.
27 reviews
December 21, 2018
Very entertaining book. Always a pleasure to read about how people live and behave when they are secluded and have nothing to compare their behavior to.
1,768 reviews10 followers
August 21, 2011
First book by this author and what I read about it intrigued me; however, it is just too dark to recommend to any of my friends.
Nothing good happens. I really hope the author has not based this on anyone's real life because it would be very sad to live this way.
I did understand and felt close to Darlene when she was watching over her children in their beds at night- worrying, hoping and praying that they would be OK.
I would probably read another book of hers if she writes one that sounds interesting to me.
Profile Image for UpstateNYgal.
155 reviews7 followers
March 10, 2009
Set in the Green Mountains of Vermont.
This story is about the complexities of life and marriage.
Darlene is the main character, who has many regrets in life.
She has three children and the story delves into early motherhood.
Things take a dramatic turn and Darlene does something that seriously affects everyone.
The story gets very involved and somewhat fantastical, but does convey the bleakness felt by the main character.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews

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