The Motel of the Stars

by Karen Salyer McElmurray

The Motel of the Stars is a novel set in Kentucky and North Carolina on the eve of the 1997 anniversary of the Harmonic Convergence, a mystical alignment of planets and a portending of universal peace first celebrated in 1987. Part satire of New Age philosophy and part commentary on a modern, fear-based era, the novel is the story of Jason Sanderson and Lory Llewellyn, who travel to the 1997 Anniversary Gathering at the foot of Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina. Both characters have for ten years mourned the loss of Sam Sanderson, Jason’s son and Lory’s lover, and both must emerge from grief into a new age of possibility and hope.

Karen Salyer McElmurray is the author of Surrendered Child: A Birth Mother’s Journey, described by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution as “a moving meditation on loss and memory and the rendering of truth and story.” The book was the recipient of the 2003 AWP Award for Creative Nonfiction and a National Book Critics Circle Notable Book. McElmurray’s debut novel, Strange Birds in the Tree of Heaven, was winner of the 2001 Thomas and Lillie D. Chaffin Award for Appalachian Writing. Her work has received support from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Kentucky Foundation for Women, and the North Carolina Arts Council. She lives in Milledgeville, Georgia, where she is an assistant professor in creative writing at Georgia College and State University; she is also the creative nonfiction editor for Arts and Letters.

256 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2008

Reviews

[Janna · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-developed protagonist goes beyond the stilted emotions that most people expect of men. A touching story of making peace with loss. A lyrical read with some new age thinking thrown in for interest.

[Shane · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are many ceremonies, this book seems to say, but it takes the right one at the right time.

[Bobbi Rightmyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book revolves around the concept of the harmonic convergence between the planets and stars to meld a story about despairity and faith. We get glimpses into the depths of two aching souls, looking for escape through love and acceptance. Jason Sanderson and Lory Llewellyn are both grieving the ten year loss of Sam – Jason for his son and Lory for her lover. Their grief could be anyone’s grief and McElmurray openly paints the story through the wounds of loss and sadness.

But we not only get the all-encompassing grief, McElmurray teases us with memories of the past and give us characters we can believe in. Jason and Lory maybe flawed people with a common grief, but they are unique individuals you will continue to think about long after you close the last page of the book. These are characters you will want to revisit again.

I was first introduced to Karen McElmurray by my friend and writing mentor, Tony Sexton, after he attended one of her writing workshops. McElmurray demonstrates the powerful way a mutual loss of a loved one can bind two totally different people together. She has a uniquely powerful voice and I look forward to reading more of her work in the future.

The book was the Linda Bruckheimer Series in Fiction 2007 winner from Sarabande Press.

[Reda · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really liked the plot line, and there were moments of excellence, but overall, it was not a great book. There has been a myth in Kentucky that all those beautiful stone walls around central KY were built by slaves. I was disappointed to see McElmurray passing this on. The vast majority were built by the Irish, who brought this skill with them from the old country. Admittedly, this is a small matter, but does not say much for her research powers. I would not pick up another of her books without a strong recommendation from someone I trust.

[Gerry LaFemina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Karen McElmurray's novel explores loss and the random connection between two strangers with a poet's ear and lyric sensibility. Ten years after the death of his son, Sanderson goes on quest to let go that includes discovering his son's long-term lover Lory, also still grieving. With multiple flashbacks, shifting perspectives, and multiple landscapes, this novel feels like grief does, and its ending as redemptive.

[Cindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn't sure I was going to finish this book, but the author managed to give me enough to keep me forging ahead. I was glad I finished it. This book is about grief and it's hold over us. The way we relate to grief is influenced by our life experiences.

[Alison]

Abstractions.

[Lara Lillibridge · Rating 5 out of 5]

McElmurray has crafted a beautiful story of complex, realistic characters but more than that, it exposes the frustration and inadequacy we all feel when seeking closure or connection or higher meaning. As a writer, this was one of those books that I loved how it was written as much as what it was about. Beautifully wrought and unpredictable.