David Rhodes was an up-and-coming writer who had won some success when he had a severe motorcycle accident in the late 70's which caused him to be paralyzed from the chest down. Now, years later, he has emerged again with the publication of this novel set in rural southwestern Wisconsin. He floats from character to character, creating beautiful descriptions of the scenery, the "feeling" of the small town, the interactions and daily lives and feelings and attitudes of the people -- and as one moves through the town and the book, one becomes caught up in it all. This was one of those where once it got going, I didn't want to set the book down. The characters were both extremely familiar (Rhodes is a master at evoking experiences and settings that made me think to myself "I've been there" or "I know just what he means!") I can't write a summary any better than the one I found on Amazon.com, so here it is: "The novel features July Montgomery, the hero of his 1975 novel,
Rock Island Line, which movingly involves him with the fates of several characters who live in the small town of Words, Wis. Through July, we meet Olivia Brasso, an invalid who loses her family's savings at a casino; parolee Wade Armbuster, who befriends Olivia after she is mugged; Winifred Smith, Olivia's new pastor; Jacob Helm, a widower who finds himself falling in love with Winnie; Gail Shotwell, a local musician who has an unusual reaction when her idol offers to record one of her songs; and Gail's brother, Grahm, and his wife, Cora, who blow the whistle on the milk cooperative that has been cheating them and other farmers. It takes a while for all these stories to kick in, but once they do, Rhodes shows he still knows how to keep readers riveted. Add a blizzard, a marauding cougar and some rabble-rousing militiamen, and the result is a novel that is as affecting as it is pleasantly overstuffed."
David Rhodes was an up-and-coming writer who had won some success when he had a severe motorcycle accident in the late 70's which caused him to be paralyzed from the chest down. Now, years later, he has emerged again with the publication of this novel set in rural southwestern Wisconsin. He floats from character to character, creating beautiful descriptions of the scenery, the "feeling" of the small town, the interactions and daily lives and feelings and attitudes of the people -- and as one moves through the town and the book, one becomes caught up in it all. This was one of those where once it got going, I didn't want to set the book down. The characters were both extremely familiar (Rhodes is a master at evoking experiences and settings that made me think to myself "I've been there" or "I know just what he means!") I can't write a summary any better than the one I found on Amazon.com, so here it is: "The novel features July Montgomery, the hero of his 1975 novel, Rock Island Line, which movingly involves him with the fates of several characters who live in the small town of Words, Wis. Through July, we meet Olivia Brasso, an invalid who loses her family's savings at a casino; parolee Wade Armbuster, who befriends Olivia after she is mugged; Winifred Smith, Olivia's new pastor; Jacob Helm, a widower who finds himself falling in love with Winnie; Gail Shotwell, a local musician who has an unusual reaction when her idol offers to record one of her songs; and Gail's brother, Grahm, and his wife, Cora, who blow the whistle on the milk cooperative that has been cheating them and other farmers. It takes a while for all these stories to kick in, but once they do, Rhodes shows he still knows how to keep readers riveted. Add a blizzard, a marauding cougar and some rabble-rousing militiamen, and the result is a novel that is as affecting as it is pleasantly overstuffed."
