At one point in Jayne Anne Phillips’ NIGHT WATCH, a character in 1874 West Virginia observes, “The fighting has ceased, but not the grief.” That short sentence encapsulates much about this book, which is largely concerned with the persistent repercussions of trauma after the American Civil War.

Much of the novel centers on the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum, where 12-year-old ConaLee arrives with her mother at the start of the story. ConaLee, whose mother has not really spoken in quite some time, is brought there by a man who insists that both ConaLee and her mother call him “Papa,” even though he’s neither one’s father. The mother and daughter have left ConaLee’s young siblings --- a toddler and infant twins --- behind and disguised themselves as a wealthy woman and her orphaned companion.

"[Phillips’] writing can be elliptical, requiring numerous rereadings to discern the depth of the action or emotion. Those rereadings reward the determined reader as the cumulative effect is one not only of historical veracity, but also of emotional truth."

The reasons for the woman's silence, and for their arrival at the asylum, gradually come into focus, as the novel travels backwards in time to earlier years, both before and during the war. It also follows several different characters, most notably Dearbhla, an Irish healer, who has intimate quasi-maternal connections with both of ConaLee’s parents, as well as a man we meet as “The Sharpshooter” but whose actual identity and relevance only becomes clear later.

The significance --- and malleability --- of names is a major theme of the novel, as various characters utilize new names to hide something, to take on a new identity, or to reinvent themselves. When she arrives at the asylum, ConaLee is instructed by Papa to call her mother “Miss Janet” and create a new name for herself. Several characters have the same names; their similarity or overlaps might happen by design or by accident. The name ConaLee chooses for herself is “Eliza,” which, it turns out, carries a significance that she only learns much later. Some have names that only describe their functions: for example, the aforementioned “Sharpshooter” or the titular “Night Watch.” Just as names converge and overlap, so do characters, as history resurfaces to inform the present.

These namings and renamings can feel creative, liberating, almost playful. But NIGHT WATCH, perhaps unsurprisingly, also has a darker streak. Befitting a novel about a gruesome war, the book contains numerous scenes of violence --- not only violence on the battlefield but also sexual violence against women. These scenes can be difficult to read, but they help to underscore the multifaceted horrors of war and explain the ways in which the asylum serves as a place of fear but also of safety and refuge for women like ConaLee and her mother.

Phillips did a lot of research for NIGHT WATCH --- including visiting the real-life asylum, which is now a national historic site --- and she includes archival photos and documents throughout the text. Her writing can be elliptical, requiring numerous rereadings to discern the depth of the action or emotion. Those rereadings reward the determined reader as the cumulative effect is one not only of historical veracity, but also of emotional truth.