The Archaeology of a Dream City

Book excerpt: Born and raised in Australia, Martha longs to return to Nadwodom, in a country called Czawa, where her parents and family grew up. As she stumbles upon the works of Marion Porter, an Australian photographer who once photographed the countryside in Czawa, Martha's own journey to her family's homeland begins to unfurl. There, she meets her cousin, Klara, and the two discover an uncanny relationship in which each sees herself in the other. Born and raised in Nadwodom, Klara helps Martha discover the multi-layered pattern that connects her present world and the history of a city that remains deep in the shadows of their family's memories. In moving across time and borders, Martha gradually recognizes the source of her yearning and the connections between the dreams and images that haunt her. Monica Raszewski's The Archaeology of a Dream City is a novel that explores the importance of remembering our histories and uncovering what has been lost. It is a story of the need to create, and a story of love that can only be lived when the past has been excavated. Jane Brown's poetic photographs accompany the author's evocative prose throughout the novel. "Beguiling and compelling, The Archaeology of a Dream City is all the more moving for the subtlety and tact of its beautifully decanted writing, rare qualities that are sure, in turn, to haunt its readers." - Marion May Campbell, fiction writer and poet