shana thornton

MULTIPLE EXPOSURE shares an intimate, ghostly portrait of the impact of war, and generations of military service, on a family. The “war on terror” has captured the lives of the U.S. military and their families for over 10 years, and Ellen Masters' husband has been repeatedly deployed. In this novel, Ellen shares her desires to connect with her husband and family, and to discover her own strength by training for a marathon. Ellen describes the woodlands where she loves to run and the cave that fascinates her throughout life. The landscape is both inviting and haunting, intoxicating Ellen to stay in that place while her husband is assigned to an Army post in another state, and Ellen longs for their daughter to connect with him beyond photographs and Skype calls. Ellen shares the beauty of a Southern setting with the complexities of living in constant transition due to the consideration of life and the possibility of death on a daily basis. Ellen creates a way to channel her frustration and anger into running—an activity that both challenges and heals her.