The Nun (Paperback)

"Truly, The Nun is an extraordinary novel. Remarkably original, it is structurally functional. It begins at just the right place and proceeds with a firm grip on the reader's mind and imagination. The poetry of Sia's journal in no way interferes with the flow of the narrative, rather it enriches it. Sia, whose name carries a reference to the Greek wanderer and the sea, is a remarkable creation. Also extraordinary is your representation of the physical world as both beautiful and threatening, so forcefully that the reader experiences both the beauty and the gratification which the outer world offers and at the same time the stress and lurking danger. The prose has a poetic quality, reinforced by the poetry in Sia's journal. I was deeply moved by the life of Odyssia."
--Jack Wheatcroft, Author, Professor Emeritus and founder of the Poetry Center at Bucknell, Juror for Pulitzer Prize for Poetry

"I am awed by the splendor of the writing."
--Jack Salamanca, Author, Lilith, Embarkation, Southern Light, Proffessor Emeritus University of Maryland

"What stands out above all is the purity and splendor of the writing. Sanchez's works are rare delicacies. Her writing style is exquisite. Her flawless prose flows, sometimes beautiful, sometimes disturbing, but always memorable. Highly recommended for the serious reader."
--Mayra Calvani, Author, Embraced by Shadows

The Nun describes two incarnations of the character, Sia (short for Odyssia). The first takes place during the tenth century in Europe, where Sia lives as a nun in a remote convent before becoming a hermitess in the woods with a passion and talent for wood and stone carving. The second takes place during the twentieth century in New York and West Virginia, where Sia is a poet in the city before forming a commune with women she meets at one of her readings. As life events distract the other women, Sia finds herself once again alone and vulnerable. The earth itself is a character in this novel as well as its inspiration. There are elements of magical realism as the dream world and the "real" world interface. This book will appeal to readers interested in nature, in magical realist fiction, in women's spirituality, in poetry and in medieval history.