BOOK REVIEW

Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier (Random House, 1997, USA)

At the recommendation of a friend, I recently read Cold Mountain, the 1997 first novel of Charles Frazier. Cold Mountain is the fictionalized account of a historical Civil War soldier named Inman. In the novel, Inman has been seriously wounded in battle, but when his body recovers, he realizes that his soul has been damaged by war, and that he has lost his vigour for fighting. Inman deserts the army and sets off on a long trek to his home in the Blue Mountains where he hopes he can find redemption and some measure of healing. Inman's journey is both literal and metaphorical. One reviewer calls it an American Odyssey. His tale is paralleled by that of his beloved Ada who is left at home during the war, and who grows stronger due to necessity, suffering and work.

One review of this novel stated: "You'll find the characters living inside your head for a long time." I found this to be true. As I thought about the book, it seemed to be about hope in the midst of suffering. I began to consider what hope is, especially for the Christian. Frazier's book is not Christian: one pastor in the story quotes Emerson more than the Bible and dwells on the question 'why was man born to die?' without finding a satisfactory answer; another pastor commits adultery without remorse and is cast out from his community. Spirituality is more of a native spirituality: Inman's desire is to reach Cold Mountain, and live at its peak and be healed by spirits. Hope in the novel is found in the natural world and in the generosity of the human spirit. In one passage, Ada and her friend Ruby have just heard a story of the atrocities of war.

"Then they argued generally for a mile or two as to whether the world might better be viewed as such a place of threat and fear that the only consonant attitude one could maintain was gloom or whether one should strive for light and cheer even though a dark-fisted hand seemed poised ready to strike at any moment." (191-2)

It is at this moment that Ruby says: "Well that's not a common sight." It is a great blue heron in the water very close to them. They watch the heron, who watches them. Then the heron spreads its massive wings and soars just above their heads.

In another passage, Inman helps a woman bury her only child. The woman is overwhelmed with sorrow and initially claims "I ought to feed you, but I haven't got it in me to even light a fire let alone cook a meal." (346), but then she calls to him, saying, "I can't ever look back on this day with a still mind if I let you go without cooking for you."(347). And so she does. And so, others who have nearly nothing, share what they have with this sojourner. He shares his skills and strength with them. The grace is human and natural, but it is grace.

As I reflected on this, I began to wonder: is all grace from God? is all hope from God? The Bible says that "suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope." (Romans 5:3) Taken on its own, these verses are illustrated in Cold Mountain. However, the context for these verses is that of justification by faith, and the love of God. The context does not seem to specify that suffering must be suffering for God, in order to produce perseverance, character and hope. I think that all hope is, at some level, in God. At the same time, however, I believe, along with Saint Augustine, that God makes our hearts restless until they find their rest in God. Perhaps certain kinds of despair are of God - when we despair of finding salvation in ourselves or in other people, when we despair of finding security in things, when we despair of life without Him. It is a despair which is answered by hope in Christ. Inman and Ada, on their odysseys, do hope, but their hope remains on a human, naturalistic level. They do not, as Paul writes later in Romans, "wait eagerly for our adoption as sons" (Rom. 8:23) with the hope that "our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us." (Rom 8:18)

Though its vision of hope is not a full one, and though this novel is not one for the squeamish or the young (due to several adult scenes and descriptions of war), I would recommend it highly. It is well written. It provides an interesting route to pacificism. It reminded me of when Jesus said: "I was hungry and you gave me something to eat; I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you visited me." (Matthew 25:35-36), that those who act in this way are the righteous who will inherit God's kingdom. Finally, though Inman and Ada do not recognize God's activity behind the acts of grace, I thought I could see Him peeking through on many occasions as I read this book. And so, it renewed my hope.

Susan Fish