Small moments in ordinary life often escalate into something much larger and unexpected in novels by Jill Ciment (Heroic Measures). In Act of God, the story grows from the discovery of a tiny mushroom that identical twin sisters--64 years old, neither married nor with children--find sprouting in the closet of their deceased mother's rent-controlled apartment in Brooklyn, N.Y. The fungus is of grave concern, but so, too, is the closet, as it houses a precious archive of letters their mother wrote for a once-popular syndicated advice column, "Consultations with Dr. Mimi," now being compiled to submit for exhibition at the Smithsonian.
Rich, quirky characterizations, witty insights into human nature and cruel twists of fate turn the initial absurdity of the narrative into a profound, suspenseful story. The virulent fungus gains strength as calamity spreads beyond the apartment. Ill-equipped hazmat teams try to quell citywide pandemonium while the growing plague wreaks havoc and claims lives.
The story examines how larger-than-life events can strip human beings--especially those steeped in the trappings of the modern world--of everything in order to fill their souls with empathy, compassion and the healing powers of love and forgiveness. Insurance companies ultimately declare the devastating toll of the fungus as an "act of God," and perhaps a higher power had a hand, too, in the unexpected personal transformations of those inhabiting this thoroughly entertaining and unforgettable microcosm that reflects the realities of life. --Kathleen Gerard, blogger at Reading Between the Lines