The reader’s loyalties to Jata and her keeper, Meg Yancy, will be tested again and again in this fine and riveting novel.” Jata, the Komodo dragon, is a beautifully constructed and intriguing character in her own right-a model captive capable of becoming a deadly predator. “Mindy Mejia’s The Dragon Keeper is everything a smart, discerning reader could want: a well-drawn love story, an ecological fable, and a suspenseful thriller. I don’t know how many terrific first novels are coming out this year, but this is certainly one of them!” I came away from this book with a deepened respect for the welfare of endangered species and with an eagerness to see more writing from this dazzling young talent. “The Komodo dragon world that Mindy Mejia creates is an unforgettable world, and the feisty character of Meg Yancy, the dragon’s keeper, is an unforgettable character. Sheila O’Connor, author of Where No Gods Cameand Sparrow Road “The Dragon Keeper is an impressive debut novel, an ambitious tale of dangerous attachment that exposes the hidden world of the American zoo, a place of greed and hubris where the desire to protect and entertain collide with disastrous results. Mary Logue, author of the Claire Watkins mysteries This is a thriller of the rarest form-one that touches both the mind and the heart. In the media onslaught that ensues, Meg tries to find a way to protect the dragons and to live with herself in a world that seems intent on crushing the innocent. The dragon is about to give birth to babies-which is a miracle-since it is a virgin birth. “In The Dragon Keeper, Mindy Mejia has created a story that is both very exotic and also speaks to an important ecological issue-how do we live with all the other beings that surround us on this lovely earth? Meg Yancy is a zookeeper and in charge of a female Komodo dragon. The amount of research that went into the novel is impressive and keeps the story grounded in science.” She manages to eloquently bring these subjects together in a realistic fashion while also unfolding a dramatic story. “Mejia beautifully tackles the subjects of animal captivity, endangered animals, human-animal connections, and even evolution. The novel also delicately touches on the issues of ‘miracles’ and nature versus religion…A highly ambitious and complicated debut novel.”
She addresses themes of freedom, independence, wildness versus captivity, and the (im)possibility of any living thing ever being tame. “Mindy Mejia’s The Dragon Keeper is a layered and complex story…In this wonderful debut novel, Mejia captivates her readers with a story in which the fates of an exotic Indonesian dragon and a Minnesotan zookeeper are intertwined. Mary Ann Grossmann, Twin Cities Pioneer Press “I don’t cry very often, but I was in tears…Not only is this an affecting story-and it moves it’s really fast-paced-but also, is simply a beautiful writer.” Mindy Mejia’s gripping debut novel highlights the perils of captivity and the astonishing ways in which animals evolve. And as she fights to save the animal she loves from the consequences of its own miracle, she must learn to accept that in nature, as in life, not everything can be controlled. Faced with this rare phenomenon, Meg must now defend Jata’s hatchlings from the scientific, religious, and media forces that converge on the zoo to claim the miracle as their own.įinally forced to deal with the very people she has avoided for so long, Meg discovers that opening herself up comes with its own complications. Jata has produced viable eggs-without ever having had a mate. Then one day, Meg makes an amazing discovery. Meg has always been better able to relate to reptiles than to people, from her estranged father to her live-in boyfriend to the veterinarian who is more concerned with his career than with the animals’ lives. A species that became endangered soon after being discovered, Komodos have a legacy of independence, something that Meg understands all too well. Jata brings the exotic to Meg’s Minnesotan life: an ancient, predatory history and stories of escaping to freedom.
Meg Yancy knows she may be overly attached to Jata, the Komodo dragon that has been in her care since it arrived at the zoo from Indonesia. A zookeeper fights to save the animal she loves, even as her own life crumbles around her…
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