Hatter’s novels always have a way of speaking truth into the confusion of daily life. While most readers pick up a novel in order to escape from the chaos of living and find solace in stock characters and a linear storyline, readers of Hatter’s work are drawn to her precisely for the absurd realism that she is able to capture. Life is not neat and tidy, and neither is this work. Within the pages of Cry of the Mock Turtle, you will see yourself, not as you wish to be, but as you really are. Told by the characters themselves, the most endearing thing about the book is its cast of characters and the truth they expose both about the darkness of human nature and the redemptive quality of the human spirit. I fear that a great many people will miss this novel - not “dismiss” it, mind you, because once you’ve begun to read Cry of the Mock Turtle, you can hardly dismiss it. People will miss it because it isn’t easily categorized, and it doesn’t fit neatly into any one genre box. It isn’t simply a shamanic tale or a tragedy or a farcical story. It is a carefully woven narrative that is rich, complex, and has true depth.

Susan Byrnes



Author, Editor, Book Critic