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In the Hands of the Living God
Lillian Bouzane
Price: CDN$16.95
ISBN 08880123330
5-1/2 x 8-1/2,
308 pages SC
Turnstone Press
(Currently unavailable for purchase)
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Book Description
In the Hands of the Living God is the
fictional diary of Mathye Caboto, wife
of the famous explorer, Giovanni
Caboto. Mathye is a cartographer and
an accomplished musician. Through her
words we learn of her husband's life
abroad as well as life in the fabulous
city of Venice.
"The book is thick with fabrics, wines,
and literary references."--Atlantic
Books Today
In the last decade of the fifteenth
century, Venice was the Queen city
of Europe.
For two hundred years her nobles
controlled the trade of the fabulous
East and their galleys brought the
wealth up the Grand Canal and
transhipped it along all the trade
routes of Europe, plying as far north
as Tana in the Black Sea and London
in the Atlantic.
Their sons were schooled in the
ways of the sea and trade remained in
their capable hands.
From one of those families came the woman Mathye, who
married the greatest seaman of them all--Giovanni Caboto.
Mathye and Giovanni Caboto dared to follow their heart. This
is their story.
Mathye is her husband's cartographer, and an accomplished
musician. A member of the Venice court, she struggles with her
love and loyalty to the man who will betray Venice by sailing
for the King of England under the name of John Cabot.
Venice's wealth is threatened by the tight race between
England, Portugal and Spain to discover a new route to the
east by sailing westward. If the Venetian Doges suspect
Giovanni's mission, Mathye and her family will be put to death
by starvation in the Tower of Hunger.
The diary and written correspondence of Mathye paint a
world filled with art, music, religious life, the social activities of
some of Venice's most powerful families, and rumours of
intrigue. Mathye writes about her life and travels to England
and Jerusalem with passion, courage and sharp humour.
Lillian Bouzane has written an ambitious and fascinating work.
Her original research, conducted in England and Spain,
unearthed evidence that Giovanni was murdered at sea, sold
out by a spy named Christopher Columbus.
"...a wonderful book, and seems to invite the same reverent
attention as a long and involved piece of music or a tapestry on
the wall. It is a story told peripherally, full of
texture."--Perimeter
About the Author
Lillian Bouzane is an award-winning
poet who won the Gabriel
(International) Award for a suite of ten
poems titled In the Time of Wolves
and is active in the Newfoundland
writing community. She was born in St.
Patrick's, Newfoundland.
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All Prices are in Canadian Dollars
