The Raven's Gift

November 9, 2009
Thirty-odd years ago, adventurer and environmentalist Turk (Cold Oceans
) watched his dog root around in newly thawed dirt and jump wildly in response to some primeval scent in the earth. In that moment, Turk had a clear vision that the margin between life and death depends on a tactile, sensory awareness of the environment that incorporates but also transcends logic. Although he gradually forgot this lesson, it came hurtling back to him one day in July 2000 when he met Moolynaut, a Siberian shaman who introduced him to the “Other World” and the ways it impinges on the “Real World.” In prose by turns ponderous and lively, Turk narrates his journey to Siberia, the people he meets, and his introduction to the mysterious Moolynaut, who seems, like Shakespeare’s Prospero, to have created a storm that washes Turk and his companion onto the shore of her village. Eventually, Turk finds himself standing naked, balancing on one foot, holding his right hand behind his back and pointing straight in front of him with his left arm as Moolynaut heals his fractured pelvis. During these moments, Kutcha, the Raven Spirit, teaches Turk to see that the Other World and the Real World are united. In what could have been an intriguing memoir but instead is mundane and uninspiring, Turk unconvincingly rehearses many of the mantras of New Age spirituality magic—even as he offers a breathtaking glimpse of life in a small, forgotten Siberian village.