Toulla Laid Down Her Gun: A Dreamscape Storytelling by Pat Watson

Toulla Laid Down Her Gun is a dreamscape After her mother threatens her life, Toulla Ederede’s life on the family farm changes suddenly. The threat comes when Toulla is unable to bring ‘More’ for her mother’s morning routine. That’s because the night before, Toulla’s father had dismantled the distilling apparatus. To escape, Toulla walks away from the farm out onto the lake with no name that her father had warned her against.
Out beyond the lake is the world of The Valleys where time is hard to pin down. But to get to The Valleys, Toulla wanders into The Lost where she encounters Anu ohia, the beast thing of many forms. She eventually escapes Anu ohia and in The Valleys, finds work at Bar Noone, run by a kind family. The son, a political science major, has a plan to rid The Valleys of the Anu ohia, and draws in many for support, including Toulla. But, something goes terribly wrong and it falls to Toulla to complete Onye Nzoputa dos Santos’ vision.

Toulla has a family curse that comes alive in her awareness at age 13. It both harms her and protects her. And, it causes her much inner conflict. Toulla’s character identifies with younger adults and other readers in this quest story of the ways in which actions have sometimes-ambiguous outcomes.