Track of the Cat, (Chapters 11-16)

This is one of those books that starts out good and just keeps getting better.  As a Mystery, it doesn’t suffer the all-too-common flaw of degenerating into a steady stream of questioning witnesses and suspects, as I was initially afraid it would.  In other mysteries I’ve read recently, I would find myself wishing for an extreme plot twist to occur, just to break us out of that too-familiar mold.  Beginning with chapter 11, that is precisely what happens here! 

Anna goes on a routine exploratory hike of a more remote area of the Guadalupe National Park; just part of the job.  But, do rangers really take hikes like this alone?  One would think they would team up in pairs, at least, in case someone is accidentally injured.  They do radio in their positions from time to time, but it seems odd that they wouldn’t use the buddy system.  What “befalls” Anna (excuse me) is precisely why going it alone seems a bad idea.  Her tumble down a mountainside, stopping just short of a 200-foot fall, and her subsequent struggle back up to the trail is harrowingly told.  At first this event seems to be completely unconnected to the story we’ve been reading so far.  Only several chapters later, after she recovers from the experience and has taken some leave from her job does she go back and discover the nature of the trap that had been laid for her. 

All through this section, she feels alone in her suspicion that the first death was a murder instead of a cougar attack.  She even begins to doubt her sanity. Colorful writing bears this out: “There were days Anna doubted she was in West Texas at all, days it seemed as if she must be in the Psych Ward at Columbia Hospital suffering from the delusion that she and all her fellow inmates were park rangers.”  And, “More than once, since she’d fled New York, Anna had feared for her sanity.  Often she saw things others did not.  Maybe because she was more clear-sighted than most.  Or had less to lose by seeing the truth.  Maybe because those things were not there.”  These observations point up one of the downsides to being so closely in touch with nature in such a harsh and barren environment.

 

The harshness of the area is aptly described in the search for Craig Eastern’s whereabouts.  “So much moisture was sucked up by heat and wind that it was almost impossible to keep hydrated.”  “Climbing out of the air-conditioned cab, Anna was hit by the heat.  For a few seconds, it felt delicious.  Then the caress grew heavy, gluing her clothes to her body.”  Most people I know, even those who live in this part of the country can’t relate to that “delicious” feeling.  For them, to perspire is to be uncomfortable.  Me?  Sometimes, I’ll get into my car in the middle of the summer, shut the door, and just enjoy those few minutes of “becoming one with the heat.”  Maybe I should be doubting my sanity too! 

The delightful personification of the animals continues.  On the somewhat darker side: “The horses plodded on [through the brutal heat] with the fatalism of all slave races.”  But elsewhere, the horses are described as almost child-like in their reactions to various events of the story - beautifully done.  Barr only gives us a taste of this writing here and there, reminding us of the age-old entertainer’s adage, “Always leave your audience wanting more” – no wonder she has such a loyal following among mystery readers!




April is Dean Koontz month! It's also the one-year mark of this book club which began last April with Koontz's 77 Shadow Street. This April we'll be reading his Odd Thomas, in anticipation of the release of the movie Odd Thomas on April 5th. Please join us in reading this immensely popular work of supernatural suspense!