Cindy Williams. The Pounamu Prophecy: A Sweeping Story of Love, Betrayal and Hope. Rhiza Press, 2015. See here to buy the book.
The Pounamu Prophecy is set in Australia and New Zealand.
Actually, this book was published in Australia, and my review copy was
sent to me from there. I thought that was pretty cool!
Helene and James are two characters in the book. Helene and James
live in Australia, and they are a married couple. Helene is a medical
doctor, and James has a graphic design business. Helene and James are
not getting along, and each feels unappreciated by the other.
Mere is an elderly friend of James’ mother, and she has come to stay
with Helene and James. Mere helps around the house and in the garden.
She is also writing a book about her life experiences. Mere is from New
Zealand. She is part of the Ngati Whatua tribe. That tribe
historically experienced hardship on account of the New Zealand
government taking its land. When she was a child, Mere lost her brother
after the water was polluted. Mere became a lawyer so that she could
challenge the government’s injustice.
This is a quality book. It is well-written, striking a balance
between prose that is simple and sophisticated. The marriage between
Helene and James is typical of other stories about struggling marriages
and the temptation to have an affair, but the characters still seemed
like real people.
There were themes in the book that I particularly liked. First,
there was Helene’s evaluation of the different religious options that
were presented to her. Helene’s friend, Nicollette, encouraged Helene
to send her wishes and requests to the universe, whereas Mere promoted a
Christian approach. Helene thought that Mere’s approach was rather
childish, or child-like, but she came to believe that there were
problems with Nicollette’s approach. Second, there was the notion that
God historically sent the Ngati Whatua tribe what they needed, when they
needed it. Third, there was more to Mere than met the eye, as Helene
and James learned near the end of the book.
The book is about forgiveness and loving others even if one does not
feel love. What it says about these themes is not particularly new, but
it is still good to be reminded of those principles and outlooks. Mere
was a wise woman with credibility on account of what she had gone
through. The book also taught me about New Zealand.
I received a complimentary review copy of this book through Bookcrash, in exchange for an honest review.