Dodging Africa

Synopsis

Dodging Africa Parallels The Experiences And Transformation Of Willa And Nora Dodge, Two Sisters Raised Apart, One In Africa, The Other Boston. The Novel Shifts Rapidly, And Sometimes Shockingly, Between The Sisters' Lives And Cultures, Both Who Seek Self-knowledge And Healing Through The Family Relationships That Have Eluded And Shaped Their Lives. Amid The Rapid Cultural Change Of The Late 1960s, The Sisters' Journeys - From Africa To Boston To Haight-ashbury And The Oregon Coast -- Intersect With Strong But Troubled Men Also Searching For Redemption In The Aftermath Of Family Abuse And The Viet Nam War. A Loving Support System From Wise And Sometimes Mysterious Batswana, Helps Willa Thrive Under Her Brilliant But Detached Surgeon-mother; While Nora Holds Tight To Her Maternal Anger, Pushing Her On A Path As Different From Her Upbringing As She Could Find, And Away From A Surgeon-father Who Can Only Offer A Remote Love. Willa And Nora's Journey Through Young Womanhood -- Against The Backdrop Of Culturally Disruptive Music, Drug Experimentation, And Sexual Experiences - Is A 20th Century Family Saga That Crosses Continents And Cultures, And Ending Up In Places That Many Readers Have Never Experienced.