Up a Tree: A Novel and Shamanic Handbook

Burns’s hybrid debut, set in Hilltown, Conn., juxtaposes the story of a woman’s progress toward self-knowledge during a difficult period with a basic primer for self-guided shamanistic practice, with chapters that correspond both to a lesson and to a tree associated with the chapter’s theme. Clare, suddenly widowed after her recovery from a major illness, is left raising two teens, one with mental illness, while trying to navigate her family’s finances, her late husband’s secret girlfriend, and her own sense of peace. Calling on her skills as an artist, and supported by her shamanic guides and rituals and the people she encounters in her life, Claire works through her challenges with grace. Clare’s story feels didactic and stylized, with dialogue that is often emotionally flat. The teaching handbook that makes up the second half of the book has practical exercises but little theoretical underpinning, and it sometimes feels disjointed and unclear about the level of its readers. But Burns does a fine job showing the relationship between esoteric practice and real-world situations, which might convince readers dubious about the value of shamanism to their daily lives. (BookLife)