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Quarantine / Jim Crace
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Five penitents wander into the Judean wilderness for various reasons, known only to themselves, for a quarantine (40 days) of meditation and fasting. Their planned solitude and prayerful reflection are somewhat derailed when they all convene near a waterhole and their destinies interconnect. One of the penitents is named Jesus, and while Crace’s story doesn’t follow the Gospels, and literalists will not care for it, the figure of Jesus is an enigmatic and a charismatic presence in their midst, even though he attempts to separate himself from the others. The characters are well-drawn and all are interesting in their own right. The ending is a surprise, there is death and resurrection of sorts, and this novel will offer much food for thought for readers of any religious persuasion.
Shortlisted for the Booker Prize 1997, Whitbread Novel winner 1997
©Ken Vesey, 12 Feb 2010

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