A man is found dead in his house in the Polish countryside. Two neighbors discover him and call the police. One of them is the protagonist. Ms. Duszejko, who hates her first name, Janina, often speaks her truth without a filter. Though she is advised not to by her friends. They fear that people will think she is a crazy old lady. That old stereotype. Beyond sexuality and beyond the world of social norms. An untethered person. Someone we discount with tenderness. But how wrong we are. She is not that person. Man, I love being wrong!
This book cracks open a view of loss and rage that is filled with humanity. Lovely, horrifying humanity. I recommend it if you would like to be challenged in what a “whodunnit” book can be about. Also, if you are looking for a glimpse into a wild, natural world that is not from your own backyard.
Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead is from the poem “Proverbs of Hell” by William Blake, English, 1757.
Click here to find Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead at the library.