The Curve of the World: A Novel

Marcus Stevens's debut novel, The Curve of the World, opens on a cinematic note: An Air France flight rapidly descends over the dense African landscape. The cockpit fills with smoke. Passengers brace for an emergency landing. Although the unlikely premise of this adventure tale--an American Coca-Cola businessman named Lewis Burke is lost in the rainforests of the Congo; his estranged wife and blind 7-year-old son fly to Africa to rescue him--sounds straight out of Hollywood, the story itself is surprisingly well written, unfolding with the grim beauty of a modern-day Heart of Darkness. Even Lewis's inevitable bout with malaria and the attentions of an elderly ndoki (witch) seem believable, set against the author's deft depictions of war-ravaged villages, the poverty and resourcefulness of the rural Congolese, and the complicated politics of the region. Stevens is less sure-handed where ordinary human relations are concerned. He underestimates the caution of mothers (it is hard to believe that Lewis's wife's own elderly mother urges her to go to Africa to find Lewis, and harder still to imagine the young woman bringing her handicapped child to a war zone) and overestimates the kindness of strangers. This is a gripping story nonetheless and a complex, accomplished debut. --Regina Marler