The Preservationist

In this brilliant debut novel, Noah's family (or Noe, as he's called here) -- his wife, sons, and daughters-in-law -- tell what it's like to live with a man touched by God, while struggling against events that cannot be controlled or explained. When Noe orders his sons to build an ark, he can't tell them where the wood will come from. When he sends his daughters-in-law out to gather animals, he can offer no directions, money, or protection. And once the rain starts, they all realize that the true test of their faith is just beginning. Because the family is trapped on the ark with thousands of animals -- with no experience feeding or caring for them and no idea when the waters will recede -- what emerges is a family caught in the midst of an extraordinary Biblical event, with all the tension, humanity, and even humor that implies. David Maine was born in 1963 and grew up in Farmington, Connecticut. He attended Oberlin College and the University of Arizona and worked in the mental health systems of Massachusetts and Arizona. He taught English in Morocco and Pakistan, and since 1998 has lived in Lahore, Pakistan, with his wife, novelist Uzma Aslam Khan.