Jane Smiley

There are two ways to look at this novel - as a King Lear reinterpretation set in 1979 Iowa or as a novel of rural Iowa. Both will be correct - and both will be incomplete. It is the masterful mix of the two that makes this novel what it is.

In the spring of 1979, the patriarch of the Cook family in Zebulon County, Iowa, decides to split his farm between his 3 daughters. The decision comes as a surprise -- he had been a farmer all his life and stepping away is not what anyone expected. show more Except that one of them, his youngest, does not show enough enthusiasm so is cut out and leaves for her lawyer career (it is 1979, invasion won't happen - the battles when they come will be in court). In case you had ever read King Lear, you already know where this one is going... or can go. Smiley does not change the main fabric of the play... but she shifts it.

The second family drama is also in full play - being born out of wedlock is not such a big deal anymore so the son is a draft-dodger instead.

Shakespeare gave us the "external viewer" viewpoint; Smiley gives the oldest daughter, Ginny, the speaker part. And that changes things - partially because now we may be dealing with unreliable narrator and partially because Goneril was never given a chance to explain herself. But that shift also means that we see the underside of the play - the good son is almost just a shadow because the 2 older sisters rarely have anything to do with him.

The novel follows the plot of the play faithfully... which initially worried me - because it almost sounded like a recipe for a predictable plotline. But instead it helped - if you knew what was coming, you were always looking into things thinking on how they tie into it; if you did not know (because you never read King Lear), some of the turns may come as a shock.

But when you remove the veneer of King Lear, you find another novel under it - the novel of the changing times of 1979 in rural America when the farmers were facing the changes in the world. Smiley writes this novel with as much mastery as she does the overlaying story - with all the nitty gritty details (get yourself access to wikipedia if you had not read about farming before -- a lot of the descriptions are extremely detailed but they are done by a farmer's daughter who is herself a farmer.

And as a third layer is the back story of Zebulon county and the Cook family - which is the story of the people that made Iowa and its neighboring states and how American farming came to be what it was.

There is a lot of personal heartbreak in this novel - on all 3 levels of the text and there are awful things that happen and that had happened. The evil sisters of the play turn into the victims here (how much they are and how much of it is the narrator is open to interpretation) and the formerly good characters appear to be either vindictive or just shadows. Old secrets also resurface - some of them so disturbing that it makes you wonder if another play's line about things being rotten should not apply here. The sexual tension of the play is also here - as it cannot not be - and unlike the bawdiness of Shakespeare, it is also explored a lot more carefully.

The end is expected - everything dies. Not literally this time (although enough people do die) - but a way of a life is dead nevertheless and the people still standing are different people.

It is a hard novel to read in some parts - some of them because of the farming narrative, some of them because of the pure awfulness of the past of some of the characters. And it is not a happy story - for anyone. But then... the dying of a way of life never is. show less

Protagonist Lydia (Lidie) Newton delivers a first-hand fictional account of life in the mid-1850’s for an adventurous, unconventional, and smart woman. She is twenty years old, and her older sisters worry about their youngest sister, as they believe she will become a spinster due to her independent spirit, plain looks, and refusal to marry an older widower with many children (whose previous wives have died of disease or infections from childbirth). Thomas Newton, an abolitionist, comes show more through her hometown of Quincy, Illinois, on his way to Kansas Territory. He finds her appealing due to her ability to ride a horse, swim, and shoot a gun. They briefly court, marry, and travel by riverboat to Kansas Territory, where Kansas is on the verge of becoming a state, and hostilities are erupting between the “free-state” abolitionists and Missouri’s pro-slavery factions.

There are many layers hidden within what appears to be a straight-forward tale of American western expansion. Smiley has written this book in the style of a 19th-century novel, as if Lidie is relating her travels and adventures, including elaborate descriptions, asides to the reader, and hints of upcoming events. The characters are lively and believable. The group dynamics are particularly well-done, showing both individual idiosyncrasies and power dynamics. Lidie’s budding relationship with her reserved, intelligent husband is one of the highlights of the book. As she gets to know him, she comes to admire and respect him. Though he is not entirely cut out for life in the west (he’s not what we would call “handy”), he has a clear purpose in his desire to end slavery, and the reader can understand her feeling that she has stumbled upon a man of integrity. In this passage, we see the growth in their relationship:

“And suddenly Thomas was with me. Rolling over that stretch of prairie that we had rolled over in such a state of innocence only a few months before brought him to me. I remembered how I used to feel his presence as a kind of largeness pressing against me, and then I would look over, and he would just be sitting there, mild and alert, taking everything in and thinking about it. That was the distinctive thing about Thomas: he was always thinking about it. You didn't have that feeling with most people; rather, you had a feeling that nothing was going on with them at all.”

She does not start out as an abolitionist, and in fact many of her relatives are sympathetic to the slaveholders. The dramatic tension is provided through the inner conflicts of the main character. Initially, she is at best ambivalent on the issue initially, but over time, exposed to the fervent views of the abolitionist community, she embraces it whole-heartedly. Her travels also provide an opportunity to gain knowledge of the slaveholder and slave perspectives.

This is a moving historical story with an authentic feel and deeply drawn characters. By following Lidie through her travails, the reader becomes immersed in the societal, political, psychological, ethical, and economic conditions that led to the violent conflicts. It is a journey, where Lidie learns and grows through her experiences. She realizes that beliefs are important and acting on those beliefs can make a difference in the world. show less

This one is an all time favorite. I really like Smiley's writing style and this is a subject so close to my heart. Having worked in the racing industry for over ten years I thoroughly enjoyed her familiarity with racing, the people and the horses.

What a great cast of characters, both human, equine and canine. There are several female characters I could just morph into; Rosalind Maybrick, Joy, Tiffany, Marvelous Martha, Deirdre, Krista, Audrey. I adore Sir Michael; what an agent! I love Justa show more Bob and Mr T; two racetrack survivors who remind me of my own racing retiree, a gelding I owned from 1989 until he passed peacefully in 2015. Residual reminds me of so many fillies I have taken care of and bonded with and thought about over the years after they walked out of my life forever. I always felt bad for the grey orphan filly......she was sending them a very clear message that she did not want to be a racehorse. Because she was bred for it, she was put into training and entered in races, and, because she was a Thoroughbred, she did what was asked of her, she raced and finally got a win before they wisely retired her. She had a sweet deal in the end, though, filling a role for which she had an aptitude. Both Epic Steam and Limitless represent the classic racetrack enigma; talented, fast, athletic horses who aren't performing up to their potential and need a trainer who can figure them out......Epic Steam never found that trainer, but Limitless did. Eileen, the Jack Russell Terrier, is a quintessential representation of what I think all Jack Russells are in thought and action.

This novel chronicles all aspects of horse racing, the tragedies, the triumphs, and even the mundane daily activities such as raking the shedrow in the late morning after early chores and workouts are over and almost every horse in the barn is napping. Jane Smiley shows us the difference between a successful but crooked and corrupt trainer (Buddy Crawford), and a brilliant, thoughtful trainer who really pays attention to each horse (Farley Jones).

I find myself re-reading this book every year as the Breeder's Cup approaches.....this is one story I will never get tired of.

Of course, this book is not for people who have difficulty keeping track of more than one character and one theme, only those capable of complex thought should crack this book open. show less

You know a book is good when immediately after finishing it you grab the source material (King Lear) to extend your pleasure from it just a little longer. I hadn't previously read King Lear, and this re imagining was absolutely spellbinding to me.

Shakespeare's high drama plot benefits from this novel's extra scope for character development. Family relationships are nothing if not complicated, and each character relates to the others with a blend of love and resentment that drives the novel. show more The farm setting was the perfect modern equivalent to a kingdom- the father is passing down both freedoms and responsibilities, making for a challenging inheritance. Loved the narrator and the limitation of only seeing her perspective. It made it feel more like an experience than a story.

Read if you are interested in family dynamics, farm life, personal motivations. If we were friends, I would have pressed it into your hands with a crazed look in my eye as soon as I finished so I could have someone to obsess about it with. show less