Illuminations of a Divinely Ordained PresidencyVera Pilgrim and the Ritual of the Dolphins traces the life of a 43-year-old African American leader involved in the U.S. Civil Rights Movement. It is an epic survey that spans history, as Vera's life engages episodes that range from the African slave trade to the contemporary challenges of an increasingly multicultural America. Vera has survived an abusive childhood to become a charismatic national leader. She heads a cast of indelible characters. Parallels between Vera and Sojourner Truth, the 19th-century abolitionist and feminist, are central to the novel’s mythic dimension. So are the two compelling dolphins Vera encounters, and the ancient ritual they are destined to fulfill together. Vera is an archetypal figure who engages historical and fictional people and situations. Vera Pilgrim vividly brings back the 1960s, its music, the political tensions of the Movement, the dramatic force of marches and rallies. Elements of magical realism against a backdrop of myth produce an uplifting conclusion.