Review of Speaking in Tungs
Karla Jay
The title is not mis-spelled. It’s an example of the author’s playfulness and
understanding when it comes to words. Tungs is the shortened form of
Tungston, the setting for the story. The novel is like a film-within-a-film. It is
written from the narrative POV of a speech therapist. Words are the
cornerstone of the story and words are the foundation of all novels. In that
way “Speaking in Tungs” can be thought of as a film-within-a-film. It helps
that the author is herself a speech therapist whose love of words and word
games is evident throughout.
Being engaged in a story being told by a speech therapist, both fictional
and real, seemed unlikely at first but engagement did happen for me.
Initially it is quite apparent that Karla Jay has a way with words. Her
sentences are well-crafted.
The main character of the novel, Marleigh Benning, is more than engaging.
We find out early on, that the primary reason she comes to Tungston is to
find out about her biological parents. Her adopted parents die in an airport
accident without ever telling her that she is adopted. She learns she’s
adopted cleaning out papers she finds in a safe.
A genealogist tells her her biological parents lived in Tungston. So off she
goes to find out who she really is. The cast of characters she meets as the
Therapist on Wheels in Tungston is funny, soulful, abused, aged, young
and deceitful, not to mention hunky.
During her search for identity she is physically abused. Therein lies a
mystery. Who is the abuser? There are several possibilities. We are
engaged to read and find the answer. Puzzles abound in this novel. Some
are word puzzles and some are people puzzles.
If you like solving puzzles this is an excellent read.
4 1/2 Stars
Bill Snyder
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