cover image Stones of the Dalai Lama

Stones of the Dalai Lama

Ken Mitchell. Soho Press, $22 (328pp) ISBN 978-0-939149-79-7

In this far-fetched yarn, better suited to an Indiana Jones movie than contemporary fiction, Bob Harlow, a down-and-out professor at the University of Mary in North Dakota, brings a curse down on himself and his family by stealing sacred mani stones from a religious and archeological site in Tibet. Overwhelmed by his misfortunes and by the perilous medical condition of his daughter, Bob travels back to Tibet with the only available companion, redneck mechanic Vern Cugnet, a perfect boor. Braving many difficulties, the two attempt to return the mani stones to their original site. Neither mystery, thriller, nor literary work, this novel is most notable for its information on Tibetan Buddhism and the region's contemporary political troubles with China; its best moments concern westerners' inability to comprehend Tibetan ways. It's never quite clear, even at the end, however, just what Mitchell ( Wandering Rafferty ) is trying to say. (Aug.)