Stephanie Johnson — Belief

Random House NZ Paperback, 485pp. In 1899, while clearing bush on his poor New Zealand farm, William McQuiggan experiences an epiphany. Shortly thereafter, he leaves his young Australian wife Myra and newborn twins and travels to America in search of God. Belief is the story of William's journey and his marriage to Myra, who follows him from Auckland to Salt Lake City, Utah, and Zion City, Illinois. With each leg of the journey, the family grows until William is the reluctant father of six. During their travels, Myra comes up against her husband's religious zealotry and his slow but inevitable mental disintegration. Spanning 17 years, three countries, and three religions, Belief heralds the US debut of a remarkable writer with a vivid evocation of a bygone way of life.AUTHORBIO: Never before published in the US, Stephanie Johnson is an accomplished New Zealand writer whose work includes plays for stage and radio, poetry, scriptwriting, and novels. Her novel The Heart's Wild Surf was published by Vintage in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand.She is co-founder of the Auckland Writers' Festival and the 2000 Katherine Mansfield Fellow. Belief will be published fall 2001 by Vintage UK. Owner's Name inside. (ISBN: 9781869414368). Very Good.