In 1936, a young mother resting by the side of a road in Central California is spontaneously photographed by a woman documenting the migrant laborers who have taken to America’s farms in search of work. Little personal information is exchanged, and neither woman has any way of knowing that they have produced what will become the most iconic image of the Great Depression.
Three vibrant characters anchor the narrative of Mary Coin. Mary, the migrant mother herself, who emerges as a woman with deep reserves of courage and nerve, with private passions and carefully-guarded secrets. Vera Dare, the photographer wrestling with creative ambition who makes the choice to leave her children in order to pursue her work. And Walker Dodge, a present-day professor of cultural history, who discovers a family mystery embedded in the picture. In luminous, exquisitely rendered prose, Silver creates an extraordinary tale from a brief moment in history, and reminds us that although a great photograph can capture the essence of a moment, it only scratches the surface of a life.
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As soon as I started reading Mary Coin I was transported to another place and time. I knew within the first few pages that I would enjoy this novel. The sections featuring Mary Coin and her children
especially impressed and haunted me. That family won’t soon be forgotten by this reader.
The big question I have is why Marisa Silver didn’t use the real names and real stories of the very real people behind the photo “Migrant Mother”? I understand that this is an imagined history of the photo and the photographer. Maybe this is just my WANT TO LEARN EVERYTHING quirk coming out? (Silver somewhat explains her thought process here)
In case you’re interested (which you totally SHOULD be) here is a link to the story behind the iconic series of photos taken by Dorothea Lange.