As I read Angle In Ouachita I was taken back to the time when novels were written without profanity and violence. This novel goes back to a time of innocence. Something that has been lacking in young adult literature for quite sometime. After examining this book I was thoroughly satisfied that it was suitable for our grandchildren. I also recommend it for all age groups, not just young adults. The suspense, excitement, mystery and adventure was well written and keeps you turning the pages.

No matter who you are or where you grew up, you will relate to the wonderful stories written and told by Linda Johnson. Her characters are innocent but curious and alive -- with each word I was there with them.

We have made exceptionally good use of this resource. The author has provided my family with a very thorough and practical guide for our backpacking expeditions to the Ouachitas. It has been invaluable to us. Enjoy.

The Mercy Seat is a rich novel, replete with biblical allusions and biblical themes. It vividly depicts life and the settling of the West during the second half of the 19th century as well as the eternal struggle of good over evil. It is a strong first novel. I found it difficult to get into at the beginning, and I found the ending unsatisfying. But for the most part, it is a gripping read.

The center of the evolving story is the conflict between brothers, recalling biblical struggles between Cain and Abel, Esau and Isaac, etc. John Lodi is a skilled craftsman in the art of gunmaking, and a man of his word; Lafayette [Fate] Lodi is a smooth talker, full of envy. Together they move their families to the San Bois Mountains of Oklahoma; but though they share physical struggles, they have no shared vision. The struggle between the brothers extends to their families, and their communities.

Askew has been compared to Faulkner, in that her themes stress the weight of family history and lore on our lives, our psyches. Additionally, Askew uses the technique of multiple voices in the exposition of the story: Mattie [daughter of John Lodi] is the main narrator, but also narrating portions are her mother, Demaris; Thula Henry, a Choctaw woman with a gift of healing; and several others.

This novel allows you to participate in the heavy cost of settling of America. You encounter: former slaves, still enslaved by prejudice; white men on the run from the law; Native Americans pushed from their homes; Evangelical preachers riding their circuits. You particpate in death, in hunger, in illness, in fear,in helping others to protect yourself, in honoring the miracle and struggle of life.

Rilla Askew's fascinating novel succeeds on several levels. She tells a good story -- one that made this reader want to keep turning pages long after bedtime -- and she accurately portrays a way of life and a multi-layered society that has been ignored by most American writers. However, most impressively, she mixes biblical truths, wisdom of the ages, passion, and the creative imperative, to create a morality tale that is all her own. Askew has been compared to William Faulkner and Toni Morrison, but she is unique: Like them, her talent is undeniable, and like them, she writes about forgotten groups of people, but her voice and the rhythms of her language are incomparable. Her writing is informed by the King James Bible, but the beauty and power of "The Mercy Seat" are strong enough to stand on their own merits, without comparison.

This book is particularly interesting to me since I tramped around the area of the country that serves as the territory of much of the work. There is a uniqueness of this geographical area, given it's kinship with the Indian Nations, early white settlers, and now modern Oklahoma Statehood that is illustrated in a way that captures the unusual and unique character of the people and land it describes.