reviewed by Tannia Ortiz-Lopès
In his book, Ana Markovic, author David Murdoch brings to the reader a profound tale of redemption about a Yugoslavian woman and her family living in Canada.
The book cover shows the expressionless face and downcast eyes of a lonely, homeless woman, Ana Markovic, whose years of alcohol abuse have caused chaotic damage to her life, her loved ones, and, ultimately, the future of her soul.
The book begins at a city park where a stranger finds Ana Markovic motionless underneath a tree near a street corner. He checks her pulse and then calls 911 for assistance. While Ana is unconscious, she meets the Archangel Michael who gives her a message of hope.
When Ana wakes up in the ER, the doctor comes to assess her condition. When the nurse comes to take some personal data and to see how she is reacting to the treatment. Ana is confused because she is not sure whether she is dead or alive.
The rest of the book takes the reader into a traveling excursion of Ana’s past, present, and future life. In her past is the war in Yugoslavia, her husband Peter, and their son, Luka. Her present is her alcoholism, her homelessness, and the hospital ER. Her future will be determined by her decision to choose God’s gift of redemption, or eternal condemnation. All her future depends on her willingness to understand and accept the message from the Archangel Michael, and depart from the demons who have tormented and manipulated her all this time.
The author exposes the reader to the world beyond our eyes— the spiritual world where battles are constantly fought between the servants of the Kingdom of God and the evil one, ruler of the wickedness of our world. He also shows how our decisions and lack of faith make us vulnerable to the attacks of demons. Those demons’ only goal is the perdition and wretchedness of our lives by pushing the weak ones to commit the ultimate sin, suicide, just for their pleasure, enjoyment, and satisfaction.
It was distracting to me the way the author portrayed Ana’s perception of Canadians, their society and integration with others. Although fascinating, this information is inserted at inappropriate times during the narrative of the story and creates a distraction for the reader who is quietly walking along with Ana, St. Michael, and the three demons puppeteering her life. Despite this misconstruction, the author’s insight is profound and he paints a perfect picture of the world in which we are living.
The reader, however, must have an open mind toward redemption and the unforeseen effects bad decisions can have on the way we live.
The end of the book echoes the words of the apostle St. Paul: ”Love conquers all”
- Hardcover: 180 pages
- Publisher: Eloquent Books (February 28, 2009)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1606936484
- ISBN-13: 978-1606936481
- Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
.
Tha nks for bringing this novel to my attention. I’ve worked with the homeless and alcoholic. I can forgive a writer much in the way of technique if they have heart and depth and it sounds like Mr. Murdoch has both.
I have to admit I’ve never had much personal experience with rehab patients, although I imagine that working with them must bring one closer to our Lord who told us to care for those least among us. If you get this book, I hope you like it. Best wishes for 2010 and God Bless,
Mr Murdoch has a great ear for dialogue which he employs throughout this novel, In fact, between the emphasis on dialogue and abrupt entry into mise en scene, I think this story would be outstanding translated into a script for theater or tv. There are a few grammatical/continuity bumps in the reading journey which a good editor could have eliminated. Nevertheless, the main character became alive for me and left a resonance that I will not soon forget. The theology is a bit heavy-handed at times, but carefully thought out. If we are all in recovery these days, so to speak, we could all do with giving this novel our attention. I am going to make sure my copy makes it onto the reading shelf in the detox area where I formerly worked. This is the kind of book that might save a few souls, and while it makes us think hard, goes down easy.
Thank you so much for your review Gunter! I am humbled by your statement that it might save souls, and I hope it does serve such a purpose, through God’s grace, for people in rehab.
God Bless,
Hi! My name is Ana Markovic
and I’m also Yugoslavian woman! Thank God that is all I have in common with this Ana 
) I would like to read this book, but my English is not that good… it would be great if there would be translation on my language 
)