All You Know On Earth

By Marilyn McGrath

Book Overview

Is memory trustworthy? Do our personal narratives rely more on fiction or fact? What role does the creative process play as we construct the past? Doctor Cal Wyatt, fresh from Harvard and Johns... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1436323215
• ISBN13: 9781436323215
• Release Date: May 2008
• Publisher: Xlibris
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 0.74 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

High quality book

As an Arizona native (born and raised in Phoenix), I found the historical and geographical aspects of this novel accurate and very interesting. McGrath wrote the book with an outstanding style in that she gave me plenty of desciptive and enhancing prose BUT did not over do it. A tough accomplishment. I loved the setting and the way she incorporated history into the plot. The story line was so realistic to me. When you finish the book you think it could have happened. I am looking forward to McGrath's next novel. TJS

A gem of a book

This is one of the most intriguing books I have ever read. Who is Rachel? What's her story? Is she really insane or at the asylum by accident? The time is 1910 Phoenix, a fascinating time for the Arizona Territory. Rachel is the central character and the story is told in great part from her point of view. She, as well as the other characters in the book, are finely drawn, full of wisdom, be it in fact or fantasy. The author deftly weaves together Rachel's story with the lives of her other characters, all during a pivotal point in the early 20th century. Although the residents of the asylum are not always at peace, there is a peace to the asylum, which sits on 10 acres in downtown Phoenix, which is mixed with the weaving of historic detail of the excitement taking place outside the asylum's fences. A must read!

Window Seat

All You Know On Earth is a sumptuous feast of plot and characters; a fascinating journey into the sights and sounds, the spiritual and secular life in the desert southwest during the early 1900s. This compelling and intriguing book is beautifully written prose crafted for the reader's delight. All You Know On Earth takes you away to a special place and time. I loved it!!

An amazing and disturbing journey.

All You Know On Earth by first-time novelist Marilyn McGrath is an example of what happens when a truly talented writer crafts a book. If the splendid desert cover doesn't draw the reader in, the word-painted story definitely will. Still a territory in 1910, Arizona is vying to become a state, suffragettes march for a woman's right to vote, the Roosevelt Dam is complete, and the newly-minted automobile chugs around Phoenix's dirt roads alongside the horse and buggy. In the midst of these transformations, a traumatized woman is found in the desert and taken to the local lunatic asylum (yes, that's what they called them in 1910). Rachel becomes the subject of Sigmund Freud's new talking therapy with Doctor Cal Wyatt, a delightful verbal tango that adds dimension to the mystery of Rachel and the circumstances surrounding her admittance to the asylum. The back and forth scenes between beautiful desert images and Rachel's disturbing life will keep the reader turning the pages. And might instill bit of history along the way. Marilyn McGrath takes her readers on an amazing journey, both internal and external, with All You Know On Earth.

Arizona territory meets fledgling Freudian analyst treating amnesiac patient

Rachel doesn't know how she got to the insane asylum and Cal, the new psychiatrist on staff, is certain he can help her with his recently learned psychoanalytic skills from "back east." When he is able to convince senior medical personnel to let him try Freudian therapy with Rachel the plot thickens. Rachel's complicated past opens more questions than are initially answered, and the fledgling analyst learns about himself as well as Rachel. The asylum setting provides a backdrop against which this novel successfully paints a picture of early Phoenix and Arizona as well as keeping the reader's interest with a shocking ending. The author's skill in describing raw emotion makes this a compelling read.