In The Utterly Unacceptable Atrocity of Isabelle Marsden, Nan Pokerwinski pens an amusing tale of a young woman searching for her authentic self following traumatic workplace events.
After enduring unwelcome sexual advances from her boss, 34-year-old Belle abruptly leaves her corporate event planning job in Chicago. Mindful of her friend’s advice to “Color outside the lines,” she decides to spend six months in Lawrence, Kansas, an unfamiliar place where she seeks a temporary haven to heal her emotional wounds.
Soon after arriving in Lawrence, Belle stops at a quilt show, where she meets Reba, an artist who fashions roadkill into wall hangings and carries a wallaby in a denim baby sling. Reba befriends Belle and soon introduces her to a quirky group of artistic individuals.
After Belle settles into her rental home, she visits a nearby outsider art installation, sparking a creative impulse. Without previous experience or formal training, she begins casting odd concrete creatures in her yard. This pursuit quickly becomes an obsession, leading Belle to retreat from her newfound friends and “enter the delirium of artistic expression.” Her prolific sculptural output lands her in trouble with authorities, and she faces potential city demolition of her creations due to zoning infractions.
Belle’s path from victim to survivor is not straightforward, and this evolution lends credibility to her portrayal. With each new monument she constructs, Belle reveals more of her backstory and confronts issues from her past. Pokerwinski doesn’t provide such development of the secondary characters. Instead they remain farcical with their unconventional appearances, supplying the narrative’s whimsical tone.
Implausibly, Belle never addresses her financial condition during her employment hiatus. But despite this, and the superficiality of the secondary characters, Pokerwinski delivers a well-paced, offbeat tale that drives home the significance of creativity and community. It will hold particular appeal to Kansas readers and fans of outsider art and is well-suited for book clubs, as it includes discussion questions.
Also available as an e-book.