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This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger #AudiobookReview #bookclub #TBT Banner

Goodreads Choice Award nominee (Also Goodreads Choice Award nominee 2023 for Best Mystery & Thriller

The selection for the October read of the Y Book Club was This Tender Land. Not the first experience with this author as I read Iron Lake last year, the kick off to his popular Cork O’Connor series. The book club meets once a month (except for December) and is very popular.

I must admit that Krueger is an extraordinary storyteller and it’s only nitpicky that I don’t feel a five star.

There might be a bit of déjà vu reading the plot line, that feeling of familiarity, borrowing from a couple masters perhaps, except that it’s not, creating a plot line of its own. The narrator is a twelve-year-old and the author does an exceedingly good job at standing in the youth’s shoes, at times mature beyond his age, and then a gentle reminder by his decisions and actions—no—he’s only twelve.

It’s the depression. The loss of Odie’s mother and then his father lands him and his brother Albert in an orphanage—not a white orphanage—one meant for the transition of Native Americans to white society. It’s cruel. Depressing. And unfortunately, historically accurate.

And it’s the cruelty that forces Odie to a wretched act forcing him and his brother, along with mute Native American Mose, and little girl Emmy to flee. Possessing knowledge of the capture and return or disappearance of previous attempts, they elect to catch a local river (rather than the train) with hopes it’ll take them far away from the brutality of the orphanage and it’s owners.

The epic novel follows them through the experiences of their venture down the river where they meet a whole world of people, the good and bad, in their bid to find their home, now a destination to St. Louis and a surviving aunt.

It’s a multi-layered plot, complex, alternately heart-wrenching and joyous. Even the support characters are so well developed and engaging, you’ll want to know what happens to them.

A breath-taking conclusion, however, may not answer all your questions. Are there some you must decide for yourself? Perhaps. For the most part, it’s satisfying, and though it leaves an impact, allows you to close the chapter and the tale.

An epic saga working on becoming a classic. Many thanks to our local well-stocked library for providing me with the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook. The thoughts expressed here are my own.

Book Club Thoughts

The publisher provides pointed questions for discussion at the book club, ably kept on topic (for the most part!) by the moderator. Some of the questions this time, however, just didn’t jive with our own areas of lively interest, with points of view generally in agreement.

We all found it amazing that a twelve-year-old could or would proceed with maturity sufficient to survive in a world heavily poverty stricken and starving. Of course, there was little question that thrust into the world at large these days, a child of twelve, virtually without any resources, would not find the same level of success.

Items specifically examined were:

►The individuals in the vagabond group: Odie’s older brother the oldest, Emmy, the girl, and the youngest.

►The sad state of those Native Children being torn from their families, their way of life, even their languages.

►Those who managed to hang on to their properties, farms or ranches, but without any resources to manage them.

►Revival tents and the level of religious fervor as well as the money generated.

►Hoovervilles—the hopelessness generated by the loss of everything and the lack of governmental intervention.

A look back at a sad time in this country beautifully laid in prose, emotion, well-developed characters, and atmospheric scenes. Well-paced, engaging, and thoughtful. I can recommend this novel. Narrated by Scott Brick who brings a special kind of emotion to the narrative.

Book Club and my star ratings

Book Details:

Genre: Indigenous Literature, Coming of Age Fiction
Publisher: Recorded Books

Narrator: Scott Brick
ASIN: B07S85YLDY
Listening Length: 14 hrs 19 mins
Publication Date: September 03, 2019
Source: Local Library

Title Link(s):

Amazon-US | Amazon-UK | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: Raised in the Cascade Mountains of Oregon, William Kent Krueger briefly attended Stanford University—before being kicked out for radical activities. After that, he logged timber, worked construction, tried his hand at freelance journalism, and eventually ended up researching child development at the University of Minnesota. He currently makes his living as a full-time author. He’s been married for over 40 years to a marvelous woman who is a retired attorney. He makes his home in St. Paul, a city he dearly loves.

Krueger writes a mystery series set in the north woods of Minnesota. His protagonist is Cork O’Connor, the former sheriff of Tamarack County and a man of mixed heritage—part Irish and part Ojibwe. His work has received a number of awards, including the Minnesota Book Award, the Loft-McKnight Fiction Award, the Anthony Award, the Barry Award, the Dilys Award, and the Friends of American Writers Prize. His last five novels were all New York Times bestsellers.

“Ordinary Grace,” his stand-alone novel published in 2013, received the Edgar Award, given by the Mystery Writers of America in recognition for the best novel published in that year. “Manitou Canyon,” number fifteen in his Cork O’Connor series, was released in September 2016. Visit his website at http://www.williamkentkrueger.com.

The Narrator: Scott Brick (born January 30, 1966, in Santa Barbara, California) is an American actor, writer and award-winning narrator of over 800 audiobooks.

Brick studied acting and writing at UCLA before embarking on his professional career in 1989.

In 1999, Brick began narrating audiobooks and found himself a popular choice for top publishers and authors. After recording some 250 titles in five years, AudioFile magazine named Brick “one of the fastest-rising stars in the audiobook galaxy,”^[1] and proclaimed him a “Golden Voice,” a reputation solidified by a November 2004 article on the front page of the Wall Street Journal. Publishers Weekly then went on to honor Brick as Narrator of the Year in 2007 and 2011. To date, he has won over 50 Earphone Awards, two Audie Awards and a nomination for a Grammy Award.

He opened his own audiobook recording studio and publishing company, Brick By Brick Audiobooks, with the goals of streamlining production and ensuring consistency throughout his body of work. [Courtesy Wikipedia]

The YMCA Book Club

Greetings from Lavender Valley by Tammy L Grace #BookReview #TuesdayBookBlog

Sisters of the Heart Book 1

Book Blurb:

Six women. Four decades. One long, unexpected reunion.

Jewel Austin is a foster mother to dozens, but forms a special bond with five foster girls she welcomed under her roof long ago. Through handwritten letters, Jewel keeps in touch with these women she nurtured to adulthood.

Now in her eighties, Jewel’s time is short, and her last letter spells out an unusual request. The five women have never met but Jewel’s last wish is for them to return to Lavender Valley Farm together, back to the refuge where they once found the love and support they craved. Jewel has a keen sense of knowing their needs before they do and she knows they are going to need their sisters of the heart.

Life’s been hard, but facing the inevitable loss of the only parental figure you’ve known can be harder. Will the five women be able to overcome the obstacles that stand in their way of granting the beloved matriarch of their family her last wish?

My Review:

Not my first experience with the author as I’ve read offerings in a couple other series, the most recent being Welcome Aboard, a collaboration.

This short and sweet offering is actually a prequel to the Sisters of the Heart series and through a series of letters to her foster children introduces the five who stood out from the dozens. Of course, not all children were with her long term and these were those with whom she had extended experience from child to adult.

The setting is rustic, rural farm country in Oregon where Jewel and her husband Chuck took in dozens of foster children. It’s a look at not only those who sacrifice to take in children, some in the worst circumstances, but of the children themselves and the stake that is given them to continue.

Each of the letters introduces us to that special someone who stayed until aged out and moved on. Then she continued to follow them, through triumphs and tribulations, marriages, happiness and heartbreak. She wishes for a grand reunion in which each now adult acknowledges the sisterhood that was created in the home that became their shared sanctuary.

It’s an interesting concept, the letters, though I assume would not be everyone’s cup of tea, particularly as it’s a one-way communication, only getting ideas of what the response might have been to the previous letter by the next.

Still, the letter whets the interest in what the girls might be like now, the reunion, and how they might all relate to each other—and to their foster mom. Might very well be something of interest to you and worth checking out. Enjoy unusual domestic fiction? Uncommon concepts of family?

Many thanks to our local library for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book. The thoughts expressed here are my own.

Rosepoint Rating: Four Stars