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This is the story of a family whose life is disrupted by violence. Their search for their outlaw son is told by Reuben Land who is certain he lives to witness miracles.
The StoryPeace Like a River is narrated by eleven-year-old Reuben Land. Reuben grows up in a small town in Minnesota in the 1960’s and lives with his father Jeremiah Land, his older brother Davy, and his kid sister Swede. The story follows the family through the loss of innocence and the resulting journey Reuben takes with his father and sister to find the now outlawed Davy. The story and author Leif Enger’s clear love of language draw the reader in quickly and completely. As a result, it is possible to read the book and miss the true driving force in the story. Miracles. Miracles occur in young Reuben’s life on a regular basis. And Reuben is certain that his job in life is to witness these miracles. Enger makes sure that the alert reader will understand what this book is about. Only two pages into the book he writes: The answer, it seems to me now, lies in miracles. Let me say something about that word: miracle. For too long it’s been used to characterize things or events, that though pleasant, are entirely normal. Peeping chicks at Easter time, spring generally...a miracle, people say, as if they’ve been educated from greeting cards. I’m sorry, but nope. Such things are worth our notice every day of the week, but to call them miracles evaporates the strength of the word. Real miracles bother people, like strange sudden pains unknown in medical literature. It’s true: They rebut every rule all we good citizens take comfort in. Lazarus obeying orders and climbing up out of the grave – now there’s a miracle, and you can bet it upset a lot of folks who were standing around at the time. When a person dies, the earth is generally unwilling to cough him back up. A miracle contradicts the will of the earth. My sister, Swede, who often sees to the nub, offered this: People fear miracles because they fear being changed – though ignoring them will change you also. Swede said another thing, too, and it rang in me like a bell: No miracle happens without a witness. Someone to declare, Here’s what I saw. Here’s how it went. Make of it what you will. Reuben ends the book there too: All I can do is say, Here’s how it went. Here’s what I saw. I’ve been there and am going back Make of it what you will. The ProseEnger’s writing is the love of language. He plays with words and instills them with a plummy richness that is often missing today. In an interview with Writer’s and Books the interviewer points out that Enger uses many words not found in the dictionary and selects muzzy, racketous, nettly, screel and whuffed as examples of his case. Enger’s response is telling. “I wasn’t aware the words you mention weren’t in the dictionary; all of them seemed appropriate and came to mind when called. On the other hand I suppose part of the thrill of language is making up a new word when one seems needed, or just for the fun of it, or using an old word in a new way.” In ConclusionThe ending of the book did not settle with me even though it was a foregone conclusion. One can sniff it out near the beginning and the tension builds, as one gets closer to the climax. There is the hope that Enger can some how pull all the threads together in a wonderful closure that feels believable and avoids any sense of greeting card trite. He didn’t quite make it. But the beautifully paced story, the wonderful narrative, and the plummy use of language makes this national bestseller, a book, worth the read.
The copyright of the article Peace Like A River: Leif Enger in Modern American Fiction is owned by Melissa Howard. Permission to republish Peace Like A River: Leif Enger in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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Oct 22, 2008 9:23 AM
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