Peace Like a River by Leif Enger Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Peace Like a River
Book Review: A Great Read-Kept You Wondering What Would Happen!
Summary: 5 Stars
I enjoyed this book once I really got past the first 50 pages or so. It is one of those stories that takes its time building.
The story has Reuben as the narrator, the middle child of the family. He has an older brother Davy, and younger sister Suede.
They live with their father who is a struggling janitor in the school, and a widower.
When two big boys that are trouble threaten their younger sister's life one evening, Davy shoots the two boys when they next come to burglarize their house with malicious intent again.
He kills both boys, and so therefore, is found guilty of murder.
After being locked away in jail, he finds an escape and becomes a fugitive. He is never to be found that easily, even when the FBI comes after him.
The family sets out to try and find Davy, and first of all, they go to a friend's home who has seen Davy since he broke out of jail. From there, they travel through Minnesota, and find a woman who takes them into her home. Davy is suspected to be in that area. And he is. Reuben discovers a man on a horse one day, and sees that it is indeed Davy. But he keeps this a secret, as the feds have caught up with him, but he is not recognized as he has radically changed his appearance.
The story builds more from this point forward. I don't dare say anymore as to ruin the book fro future readers, but it gets really good from there on. A side plot is that this Roxann that takes the family in is having a budding romance with the father. The two may just wind up together.
Book Review: A HUGE disappointment!
Summary: 1 Stars
I thought I would LOVE this book. Why would I think otherwise, given the rave reviews posted here and also included on several pages of my paperback edition? I was wrong, wrong, wrong. This novel is tedious, cliche, boring, and worse, entirely full of itself. The writing is like Garrison Keillor gone awry--instead of being naturally charming and funny and insightful, we see the author TRYING to be charming and funny and insightful. Trying way too hard and not at all succeeding. The characters were stock, the story was unbelievable, Swede was utterly insufferable in my opinion--with her ridiculously advanced (and hideous) epic poem--and Rube was right behind her in the insufferability department. We see the good guys, the bad guys, and nothing in between and we also see how God is only on the good guys side (that's really Christian, huh?).
I don't mean to be negative. I love more than anything to come on here and recommend a good book, but I really have to be honest. In my opinion, readers of good literary fiction are not going to like this book. I was so disappointed in this one.
Book Review: A Miracle of a Story
Summary: 5 Stars
I just finished teaching this book to 140 high school sophomores. Guess what...with few exceptions they LOVED it. Enger's characters speak to that part of our hearts that loves both what is "real" and what is "magical". This rich prose sweeps the reader into characters who, as one of my students said, "I expect to meet me coming down the halls. I cannot get them out of my mind." Full of unique figurative language (Reuben doesn't "fall", he "tastes dirt"), western, romantic heroes, and one amazing trip to heaven, this story never fails to make me wonder and weep---and I have read it 20 times. Each new reading brings new wonder. And if you like this book, you will also love "Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy" by Gary Schmidt. Happy reading!Book Review: A Must Read.
Summary: 5 Stars
No matter what your taste is, you will love this book. A wonderful story beautifully told. Reminds me of Holden Caulfield and his sister in "The catcher in the rye". It's one of those books you can't put down, and stays with you for a long time.Book Review: A Nice Change
Summary: 3 Stars
I had to read this book as a summer reading book for school. I personally thought it was a nice refreshing change. I am a christian and normally in school we read books about pessimists and people who don't believe in God which, I mean, is ok and everything but it gets to be very depressing. Then all of a sudden we have this book to read which is so spiritually uplifting. ALthough the book was hard to understand and (which was the reason I gave it a 3) I enjoyed the religious change. It was funny to me though how in school everyone freaked out over having this book to read. They said it was too religious, even though we read religious books all the time. The only difference is that instead of the story being about atheism and people who hate religion and anyone who practices religion, it was about faith and believing in the truth.