Summer Snow
William T. Hathaway
(Reviewer - Rebecca Brown)
2005 Avatar Publications
ISBN: 097384423X

A spiritual novel set amidst the war on terrorism when an American warrior falls in love with a Sufi mystic.

In this time of post-9/11, US Special Forces doing battle with al-Qaeda in faraway places, come now to Kyrgyzstan.

Cholpon is a farmer of honeydew melons. She's also a lifelong member of an ashram with both Vedic & Muslim traditions, which had had to meet underground during the anti-religious Communist occupation. Once the Soviets left, the Circle of Friends bought an abandoned collective farm in a valley high in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan, choosing to live apart from the male-dominated society, away from the patriarchal Muslim authorities who despised all other religions.

This family of nuns, peaceful farmers & mystics, are led by the ancient, visionary & beloved Djimala, who studied with Maharishi Mehesh Yogi, in India where she'd become a chela, an aspiring yogi, & learnt transcendental meditation. He'd then encouraged her to return to her homeland, remain a Muslim & use the Vedic techniques of consciousness to “reinliven the mystical spirit of Muslim Sufism.” Back home she'd apprenticed with Shayk Rais Yasavi at the Sufi center in Osh & immersed herself in Islam.

When a stray, angry man strides through the valley & chops off some branches of a walnut tree, the nuns, out tending the fields, group together & chant prayers of peace & enlightenment. Although still arrogant & unimpressed, the stranger does stalk away, having harmed no one.

Now Djimala tells Cholpon of a vision -- she is to take a load of produce into Bishkek, the distant market town, sell it, bank the earnings... & not return. She is to await her destiny there.

Ill at ease at having to quit the place of her heart, Cholpon drives the battered old Moskvich truck the 250 miles around Lake Issyk-Kul over the Bostrovka Pass, down into the Chu Valley into her home town, in the shadows of the Ala-Too peaks. This she's done many times before, staying overnight in the apartment her parents raised her before heading back. This time, however, she must stay.

Meanwhile, Jeff Madsen, no longer a youngster in Vietnam, is awakened by gunfire. Trying to get a grip on reality, he knows the sound of a battle yet can't place himself nor the woman beside him. He gets out of bed & peers from behind the curtain at the scene below, finally remembering he's now in the State Department administering foreign aid. & in the dark streets a raid is going on at the Kyrgyz Air Force Base. Weaponless, he dashes out into the shadows of the street, watching as a unit of intruders blows up a gate, rushes in & almost immediately comes out carrying something heavy on a pallet. They load it into their truck & start to leave the compound.

Jeff picks up the weapon from a fallen guard & taking aim, shoots into the fleeing truck, hitting the driver. Then all hell breaks loose as intruders pour out of the back & start firing at him. When one of them lobs a grenade, Jeff ducks into the remains of guardhouse. The grenade narrowly misses blasting him into smithereens, except the shrapnel finds its mark. As the truck races off into the night, Jeff limps back to the apartment building where his erstwhile lover refuses to let him in. As he's staggering back along the hallway, another door opens & in good if accented English, a woman asks if he's been hurt.

Cholpon's destiny has arrived...

While Summer Snow is a lively adventure story, it's also about love & is, mainly, a deeply religious & spiritual tale, describing transcendental meditation, the history of Sufism & insights into who we are, what we're doing & where we're going. & this is its intention.

With equal skill William T. Hathaway, in his debut novel, writes about war zones & battles & meditation & eternity.

Very well done! Exciting & thought-provoking.
(06/18/06)

Rebecca