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arielamandah's review against another edition
5.0
A 24-hour book. Cover to cover in less than 24 hours--plus a busy day in between. Rocket Barnes up my list of authors. The type of writing I'd like to do if I wrote fiction. Loved it. Lush, haunting, heartbreaking, real.
sandeestarlite's review against another edition
4.0
An enjoyable slow read about a newly married couple who move to Idaho and find what they're made of (not the healthiest in mind or relationship).
baklavopita's review against another edition
4.0
Lyrical. Yearning. This story ended up in places I never could imagine it would have gone. That the story takes place in Idaho or in a rural setting was not so important to me as the characters I spent time with. I continue to think about them and want to know where the rest of their lives ended up. This was a very moving story.
nonna7's review against another edition
5.0
It isn't easy for an author to make me cry even once, but Kim Barnes as done it again in this book from 2008. In 1960, fresh out of medical school, Thomas Delacotte takes his wife and love of his life, Helen to a hardscrabble property he has bought sight unseen in Idaho. Inspired by Hemingway's Nick Adams stories, he envisions a simple life away from the pressures of Connecticut and his wife's wealthy family where he can spend what turns out to be most of his time fishing, hunting for wild greens and watching the wildlife. (I read those stories as a pre-teen and young teen, but they didn't give me those same romantic notions at ALL!) They move outside a small Idaho town that needs a doctor. He reluctantly sets up practice, but, in reality, he was never meant to be a doctor. He apparently really doesn't know what he wants it seems other than Helen and a dream. When Helen gives birth to their daughter, tragedy follows. She is attracted to their hired man, a rather well-worn story. Elise grows up with a biological father who is distant and has become a drug addict. Her real father is Manny, the hired man, who has loved her mother forever. As I read this, I found Delacotte to be a character who was impossible to like. Despite loving his wife, he distances himself from her. He refuses to embrace the people of the small town who are willing to embrace him. They need a doctor, yet he can't be bothered. Plus he is negligent - both of his patients and his family. The New York Times book review I read, talks about the myth of self reliance and the need for community. Delacotte rejects that idea completely, refusing to allow his daughter the community she craves until it is almost too late for her. Luckily, she has Manny as her real father who guides her with love and compassion in memory of her mother. Human beings need and crave the community of others. It's what we are.
rdebner's review against another edition
3.0
This novel incorporates elements from Barnes' memoirs -- small Western communities, born-again religion -- into a wholly new story. I enjoyed reading it.
matthew_p's review against another edition
3.0
I can't put my finger exactly on what it is that made me not love this book, but it was a general sense that the story had been crafted and edited. It might have been the difficulty of putting a finger on time, but overall I kept getting a sense of the writer working to put the pieces together, and it put me off.
amandavestal's review against another edition
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
This book felt like it was missing important parts. You cared about the characters but also missed important parts of their lives.
sarahc3319's review against another edition
4.0
How did Oprah's book club miss this one? Drama, drama, drama-- a novel which checked off many boxes on the list of stereotypical plot twists. A dead mom, an abused child, drug addiction, small town isolation, the gruff-and-quiet-but-loving hero... but I LOVED it. Couldn't put it down. It's a quick read with flowery language that could be off-putting but wasn't to me. Give it a go!
oldrunningmom's review
4.0
Beautiful prose makes this melancholy book worth reading. This is a poignant story about persevering no matter how bad your life is.
le13anna's review
3.0
ever read a book where the first chapters thrill you and then by the end its taken such a turn for sadness that you just want it over with?