How Clarissa Burden Learned to Fly, by Connie May Fowler

Connie May Fowler writes hard truths in beautifully gritty prose. The beauty lies in the beautifully crafted wording which paints a vivid picture. At the same time, the story propels the main character through a hard life - sometimes horrifically so - to a place where the reader knows that life will be better.

My first experience with Ms. Fowler's writing was several years ago with her book Before Women Had Wings. The book deals with child abuse, alcoholism, domestic (partner) violence, suicide, and abject poverty from a child's point of view. Avocet Abigail Jackson - better known as Bird - weaves a tale so difficult, yet mesmerizing, that a reader will almost want to put the book down, but will have a hard time doing so. It is only at the end of Bird's story that Bird and her older sister Phoebe, both of whom are white, are sent with their black neighbor, Miss Zora, to fly off to a better life.

Ms. Fowler's biography, When Katie Wakes, describes her life while living with "a man who was bent on destroying her, physically and emotionally."(1; see below) It is through the unconditional love of a dog (Katieland) that Ms. Fowler gains the confidence to leave.

In October, 2011, Connie May Fowler was at the St. Petersburg Times' Festival of Reading (now the Tampa Bay Times Festival of Reading) to promote How Clarissa Burden Learned to Fly. I purchased a copy on the strength of her book Before Women Had Wings, and seriously meant to read it immediately. Unfortunately, I've only recently read the book.

The first few pages of the book - a book which takes place exclusively during the summer solstice - made me a little edgy. Clarissa Burden has a bad case of writer's block. Her distant and somewhat abusive husband, Igor "Iggy" Dupuy, an Afrikaner, photographs nude women (when he isn't taking them to bed), while letting the women think that Clarissa is his housekeeper. He treats Clarissa horribly, attempting to control her every move, even as she's their main financial support. I spent the first few pages thinking, "Honey, you really need to kick that jerk out!"

However, after Iggy decides to leave for "business" in town, Clarissa's growth begins. She takes her pickup truck, which seriously needs to be traded in on almost anything, out to run errands of her own. This includes getting rid of the huge pile of garbage that Iggy has placed in both the cab and bed of the truck, a truck which gets sold to a man she's nicknamed Cracker Barrel. The book gets stranger/more interesting as Clarissa's day progresses. When she gets home (with a beautiful yellow El Camino), the reader catches another glimpse into Iggy's abusive treatment of his wife: he treats her shabbily, then orders her to take back her new vehicle and to bring back the truck.

As with most of Ms. Fowler's books (at least the ones I've read thus far), it is in the last section of the book that Clarissa finally catches a break - a break that, along with her growth during the book, grants her her freedom. Iggy and Clarissa are atop a fifty-two foot fire tower, and...Clarissa lives with no serious injuries, a traveling carnival's Money Dog survives because of her, Iggy - a man nobody likes - is arrested, and Clarissa's writer's block is gone. How?

You'll have to read the book.

(1) Quote from Connie May Fowler's website: http://www.conniemayfowler.com/Syn_Katie.html Read more at How Clarissa Burden Learned to Fly by Connie May Fowler
My rating on Goodreads: 4 of 5 stars