This novel has an edge-of-your-seat opening. It’s 1946, and a boat with three people on it
sinks near the Channel Islands off the coast of Santa Barbara, CA. Beverly is the only one who survives, and her
granddaughter, Alma, is the main character.
Alma Takesue works for the National Park Service and is involved in the
eradication of invasive animal species on the Channel Islands. Her nemesis is Dave LaJoy, a successful
businessman and fanatical animal rights activist who does not want to see the
rats on Anacopa Island poisoned. These
two warring factions both have a legitimate argument, but Dave takes his
battles to an extreme and dangerous level, thus diminishing his influence. In one scene, he and Alma are actually at a
restaurant together, and he proves himself to be rude to the point of total
irrationality. That behavior is just the
tip of the iceberg, compared to what else he does. His most deranged acts don’t even have
anything to do with preserving animal life.
This book recounts a multitude of adventures of several generations of
channel island dwellers, divers, and pleasure seekers but never strays far from
the central ecological issue. Prior to
her job in California, Alma was in Guam for three years, where the brown tree
snake, accidentally introduced there, has almost completely annihilated all of
the native animals. This experience has
fostered her passion for protecting the Channel Islands from a similar
fate. The novel keeps coming back to
Alma’s personal and professional journey, but the myriad misadventures on land
and sea of other characters, some of whom make a very brief appearance, provide
the thrill ride that jumps off the page.
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