I'm happy to host Author Mary Lowry today to talk about her book, The Earthquake Machine. You can find more about Ms. Lowry at her website www.marypaulinelowry.com.
First I want to thank Danielle for hosting me here at Chaos, Coffee, & a Bookshelf. Like Danielle, books and coffee are two of my favorite things on earth, and I’m also a bit scatterbrained.
Girls Just Want to Have Adventures
Growing up I was always a little miffed that so many books and movies were about boys having wild adventures as they came of age. And I’ve always pushed against societal expectations for women. I’ve done work in several male dominated professions; I’ve been a forest firefighter, construction worker, and Hollywood screenwriter. Women make up only 10% or less of each of those professions!
So it was natural for me to write a novel about a girl named Rhonda who runs away from home and travels to Mexico where she transforms her appearance so she can “pass” as a Mexican boy named Angel. She realizes that she will be safer and less conspicuous if no one knows she is a girl. And her disguise allows her to have all kinds of amazing experiences.
The Earthquake Machine is an adventure story and not for the faint of heart. The book blog Insatiable Booksluts calls it “Huck Finn with vibrators!” I love that description because The Earthquake Machine is meant to be a shocking and fun literary novel for any reader ready for a challenging and wild ride.
The book every girl should read,
and every girl’s parents hope she’ll never read.
The Earthquake Machine tells the story of 14 year-old Rhonda. On the outside, everything looks perfect in Rhonda’s world, but at home Rhonda has to deal with a manipulative father who keeps her mentally ill mother hooked on pharmaceuticals. The only reliable person in Rhonda’s life is her family’s Mexican yardman, Jesús. But when the INS deports Jesús back to his home state of Oaxaca, Rhonda is left alone with her increasingly painful family situation.
Determined to find her friend Jésus, Rhonda seizes an opportunity to run away during a camping trip with friends to Big Bend National Park. She swims to the Mexican side of the Rio Grande and makes her way to the border town of Milagros, Mexico. There a peyote- addled bartender convinces her she won’t be safe traveling alone into the country’s interior. So with the bartender’s help, Rhonda cuts her hair and assumes the identity of a Mexican boy named Angel. She then sets off on a burro across the desert to look for Jesús. Thus begins a wild adventure that fulfills the longing of readers eager for a brave and brazen female protagonist.
Author bio:
Mary Pauline Lowry has worked as a forest firefighter, screenwriter, open water lifeguard, construction worker, and advocate in the movement to end violence against women. Due to no fault of her sweet parents, at 15 she ran away from home and made it all the way to Matamoros, Mexico. She believes girls should make art, have adventures, and read books that show them the way.
Mary has kindly offered to give away two print copies of her book the Earthquake Machine! Use the Rafflecopter Form below to enter!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
