Mary Coin, by Marisa Silver (2013)
The cover photograph is the famous photograph by Dorothea Lange entitled Migrant Mother ~ the mother and baby taken during the Depression in 1936. At the time, Dorothea Lange was working for the United States’ Farm Security Administration and taking pictures as part of the work program.
Mary Coin is a novel based on this photograph. In the novel, Vera Dare is the photographer, and Mary Coin is the mother. Mary was of a poor family living in Oklahoma in the 1920s, shortly before the Dust Bowl. She falls in love with Toby Coin, and at age 17, marries him and begins her family. Toby was of poor health and quickly dies, leaving Mary with a growing family. She moves from place to place finding work in farms so to feed her family, ultimately finding her way to California.
The novel spans nearly 100 years, from Mary’s early life to the present day. The novel opens in present day with Walker Dodge emptying his father’s house after his father died. Walker is a history professor with little knowledge of his own family’s history. He meticulously goes through his late father’s possessions in hopes of learning more of his mysterious grandfather.
Then we switch to Mary and her life. The book describes the life of the migrant worker. One day, Vera comes across Mary as she is holding her new born, pondering how to get her broken down car started. Vera asks to take her photograph. Mary agrees, but doesn’t really know what she is agreeing to.
Soon the photograph is plastered in all the papers. Years later, Mary locates the photographer and, thinking Vera made money off the picture, makes a plea for funds. This briefly touches upon ownership issues of work done at the behest of a governmental entity. It would have been interesting to have explored this issue in more detail.
The novel does, however, explore how lives touch and become intertwined. It was interesting, but not one of my favorite books.
Read: June 15, 2019
3 Stars
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