Ordinary Grace

A rites of passage type book, beautifully written, attention grabbing. When I started this book I decided to read it slowly, but couldn't stop reading. I had to find out what happened next. I am glad to read it. enjoyable read. The book takes place in the mid west, a small town in southern Minnesota during a long, hot summer in the year of 1961. Life was quiet, slow, people knew each other. The story is told by Frank Drum, thirteen years old that year. He tells of what happened in that town in that year forty years ago. Frank is middle aged now, married, grown children. I like the midwestern writers. They tell a good story, write good books. Frank is a middle child, older sister, Ariel, eighteen, musically gifted, getting ready to go east to Julliard, younger brother, Jake, eleven, who stutters badly, hates to speak and is teased by others. A boy who watches quietly, says nothing, knows much. That summer a young boy, only child of older parents is killed by a train. The boy was slow, Frank's age but two years behind in school. Frank's father, Nathan Drum, is the minister of the Methodist church so the family knows many people. That year, everything seems to have gone wrong. Things are not what they seem in this quiet midwestern town. Ruth Drum is musically gifted as is her daughter. She loves leading the choir and is active in everything musical in town. There is a mean teen age boy in and out of trouble, Morris Angdahl, who torments the Drum boys, a rough, mean cop, Doyle, Nathan's war buddy, Gus, another rough,drinking man with a heart of gold but a friend and protector of the Drum boys. There are some strange, interesting characters good to read about. The members of the wealthy Brundt family who own the finest home in town, midwestern royalty. Karl Brundt is the boyfriend of Ariel, His uncle, Emil, is a piano virtuoso, composer, well known, who went to war and returned blind, face badly scarred. His younger sister, Lise, is different, deaf, never leaves her home and keeps house for her brother. Lise will not relate to others except for Jake, keeps a lovely home, beautiful garden. There is the fascinating Indian, Warren Redstone. Frank is nosy, always being places he has been told to stay away from, dangerous, listening to conversations he has no business hearing. There is so much truth in the book. It has won several awards, well deserved. This is the first book I have read by Mr. Krueger. He is a wonderful writer who pulls readers into his books.

Many novels take place in an earlier time, but not all have the ability to evoke feelings of nostalgia and perfectly capture times gone by. Authors like Larry Watson have done it (with novels like Montana 1948 and American Boy), and with his new novel, Ordinary Grace, mystery writer William Kent Krueger has done so as well. The book takes place in New Bremen, Minnesota in the summer of 1961. Thirteen-year-old Frank Drum is on the cusp of young adulthood and he occupies himself the way most boys his age do--hanging out with friends, trying to get a glimpse of women whenever he can, wanting to be treated like an adult, and simultaneously protecting and bullying his younger brother, Jake, who has a debilitating stutter. Their father, Nathan, is the town's Methodist minister, who hasn't quite shaken the horrors he experienced in World War II; his mother, Ruth, isn't quite satisfied with life as the wife of a minister, and pins all of her hopes and dreams on her daughter, Ariel, the boys' older sister, who is a gifted pianist and musician about to attend Juilliard on scholarship. When a young boy is killed by a train, the idyllic nature of New Bremen begins to shatter. And when questions about whether the boy's death was an accident begin to arise, they set into motion a number of discoveries and serve as a catalyst to several other tragic events that summer which rock Frank and Jake to their core, making them question their parents, their faith, and those in authority, and cause them to deal with feelings of guilt, anger, sadness, and betrayal. This is a well-written, slow-moving book which doesn't surprise, but it does pull you in. The characters are complex and well drawn, and not entirely sympathetic, but you are still interested in finding out what happens to them. I found the resolution of the major crime in the book a little too predictable, but liked the way the book wrapped up. My greatest frustration, however, was how so many of the events were set into motion simply because Frank or Jake were either bullied into divulging secrets or felt bullied into keeping secrets they shouldn't have. It reminded me a little of Atonement in that way. I know that younger children do blurt things out but the fact that it happened more than once--and that those in authority manipulated this information--weakened my fondness for the book a bit. Ordinary Grace perfectly captures a time and a place that no longer exists. William Kent Krueger is an excellent storyteller, and although I found the book frustrating in places, it is still tremendously readable and well-written. But if you're a fan of Krueger's mysteries, be warned--this is fiction with a touch of mystery, not a thriller.

Although this book starts slowly, with a somewhat protracted account of the boys' childhood activities, it picks up pace after the first third or so and then develops into a really worthwhile read. Krueger's prose is exquisite, his characters well-developed and the story skilfully crafted. You would have to be seriously asleep on the job not to work out the supposed 'revelation' in the final chapter long before it comes, but discerning whodunnit several chapters before the end does not diminish the pleasure of reading on. That is due to Krueger's writing skills and to the level of affection the reader has by then developed for the main characters. The frequent reflections proffered in the text are sincere, thought-provoking and mature. I found the book quite beautiful in parts and overall a really impressive piece of work. Far less worthy texts have taken home the glittering prizes of the literary world - this novel is like William's 'Stoner' and Savage's 'The Power of the Dog', a literary gem that deserves more acclaim that it has garnered to date, it is one of those books you press upon your friends to read. Loved it.

How I adored this masterful piece of literature. The writing was sublime, the story was enthralling and the whole book was unforgettable. As an avid reader of over 65 books a year, I read many novels that are quickly forgotten as soon as I finish the last page, but I know that this one is a life lesson for me. Perhaps it's because Frank Drum, our protagonist, was thirteen in 1961 which puts us in the same general age group, or that he grew up in a place where it wasn't necessary to lock the door, as I did, or his two parents were very different from each other, but stayed married until death did them part which happened in my life too. So obviously I identified with him and the time. A time before devices or cell phones and social media. A time when a new, young president with a beautiful wife and small children occupied the white house. Then Frank meets the grim reaper nearly face to face when several deaths occur in his idyllic setting. All the characters in this book are real to me. This book almost seems autobiographical. This is the coming of age year for Frank Drum and the lessons he learned carried with him forever as he explains later in the book which is forty years on. This is not solely a murder mystery. The story lingers on long after you finish the last page.

Absolutely loved the book and so did my book club. Great characters and characters development. A combination of Bildungsroman and murder mystery.

いつもの森林保安官の話しかと手にしたらまったく新しいタッチの珠玉の作品に出会えた。1961年、ミネソタの閑静な田舎町で13歳の僕「フランク」は弟「ジェイク」と18歳の姉「アリエル」の３人で優しい牧師の父「ネイサン」と聖歌隊を指揮する母「ルース」のもとで町の人たちから可愛がられながらちょっぴり大人の仲間にいれてもらったりして楽しい日々を過ごしていた。11歳の「ボビー」が列車に轢かれて死亡しているのがみつかり、保安官「ドイル」が捜査にあたるが、僕を大人並みに扱ってくれる父の友人「ガス」黒人「ワレン・レッドストーン」や盲目の「エミール・ブラント」、そして姉のボーイフレンド「カール」などが絡んで次々に事件が起き、腰巾着のジェイクと一緒にミネソタ川の周りを歩き回る。13歳の子がビールを飲んだり大人っぽい推理行動をするのが日本的には珍しく、ハックルベリーの世界だなあ、と感心する。「僕」の一人称で語られ、最後の数ページで40年後の今、年老いた父と故郷への再訪で切ない想い出を振り返るという、重い内容を子供の目線で優しく描いた、本をおくのが勿体ないぐらいの余韻を貰った。

This is a very beautifully written book about a boy coming of age and discovering all is not well in the world. Frank Drum is the son of a small town pastor in the early 1960's. He has an older sister Ariel and a younger brother Jake who is afflicted with a stutter. Frank's safe world is shaken by the death of another child. This leads to he and his brother discovering the dead body of an itinerant man and a chain of events kicks off. There are some very complex characters including his father's friend Gus with whom he shares the horrors of a war they would rather forget, and Emil Brandt, the former boyfriend of Frank's mother who was scarred and blinded by the war. This is not a fast moving whodunnit, this is a slowly revealed mystery that is more about the impact on lives than solving a crime. It is about love and forgiveness. If you are a fan of To Kill a Mockingbird then I am sure you will love this too.