Author Janet Kay (Jenson) has just released her debut novel, “Waters of the Dancing Sky.” She will be meeting the public as well as reading, selling and signing copies of her book at the Ranier Community Building at 7 p.m. on Saturday.
This will be Kay’s first book signing event, appropriately held in the location where her novel is set — Rainy Lake.
Kay told The Daily Journal that she vacationed with her family in Minnesota for years.
“Rainy Lake, its history, and its people have become very special to me,” she said. Kay reports that she has also spent a considerable amount of time on Rainy Lake, doing research for this novel.
She offers the following reviews of her work:
Melissa Levine, independent professional book reviewer says, “‘Waters of the Dancing Sky’ is a brilliant tale of second chances and building a better, stronger life. Kay does a wonderful job of bringing to life not only the landscape and structures around the Rainy Lake area, like the Kettle Falls Hotel, but she also paints amazing pictures of life on an island in this region ... I highly recommend it.”
Locally, Mike Williams, boat captain in Voyageur’s National Park said, “Janet Kay’s novel is set in our beautiful Rainy Lake country, home of Voyageur’s National Park. Long recognized for its unique geology and its historical significance, this special place comes to life in the pages of this novel. I fell in love with Rainy Lake long before becoming a fishing guide here at age 12. Kettle Falls was my family’s home. As you read this novel, you will understand why I have made Rainy Lake my home.”
Thornton Wilder once wrote, “There is a land of the living and a land of the dead, and the bridge is love — the only survival, the only meaning.” The quote captures the theme of Kay’s work.
Sometimes you must tiptoe across that bridge linking this world with the next, says Kay’s press release. It explains: “Sometimes, it is the only way to put the twisted pieces of one’s life back together again. Kay’s novel is a love story that embraces past and present realities. It is the story of a middle-aged woman haunted by a tragic past — the drowning death of her young mother, the shame of having no father.
Escaping from an abusive marriage, she retreats to her family’s wilderness island home on Rainy Lake along the Minnesota/Ontario international border. Here, she embarks upon a journey of self-discovery that flows through a series of wilderness adventures, past and present. As she delves into her mother’s old diaries, she discovers long-held family secrets including the shocking identity of her mysterious father. Spirits of the past emerge as she struggles through a complex web of emotions and shifting relationships. Can she forgive and put the past behind her? Can she learn to trust and to love again?
“The novel is a blend of fact and fiction that weaves an appreciation of nature and local Ojibwe culture into mankind’s eternal search for meaning,” the release continues. “It’s a great read for the Halloween season – or any season.”
A Canadian book signing is scheduled at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Fort Frances Museum, preceding the event in Ranier.
The author is a freelance writer who resides on a lake in the woods of Wascott, Wis. Drawn to nature since she was a child, she said she sees its wonders as a source of renewal, reflection, and connection with something greater than oneself. Her lifelong passions include creative writing, photography, travel, and spending time with family. Visit her Web site at www.watersofthedancingsky.com [3]
If you go:
WHAT: Book signing of “Waters of the Dancing Sky,” a novel set on Rainy Lake, written by Wisconsin author Janet Kay.
WHEN: 7 p.m. Saturday
WHERE: Ranier Community Building
Published by Llumina Press. Also available through the publisher, 866-229-9244 or www. llumina.com; as well as through Ingram, and Baker and Taylor.
ISBN: 978-1-60594-278-0 • $16.95