The Lighthouse Road: A Novel

Book one of a trilogy, THE LIGHTHOUSE ROAD is something of a slog to read, and I almost quit around the halfway point, but I kinda wanted to find out what happened, so I gutted it out to the end. Unfortunately nothing much happened. A tale of misbegotten immigrants and orphans weathering their hard lives in a lumber camp village on the shores of Lake Superior in northern Minnesota, the narrative jumps between two generations of the Eide family in the 1890s and the 1920s. The story is mostly mood, decked out in endless historically correct detail, with too many scenes of mute masculinity - much rolling, lighting and smoking of cigarettes, or packing of pipes - interspersed with sappy scenes of women - feminine feelings, fears and being interfered with. It's all very cold, very primitive, briefly brutal, grim, sad, etc. And nothing much happens. I can't believe I read the whole thing, but I did, so I guess I liked some of it. Peter Geye is a pretty good writer. I just didnt much like the characters, and couldn't make myself care what finally happened to them. So. Two more volumes of this misery? I don't think so.

- Tim Bazzett, author of the memoir, BOOKLOVER ( )

Odd Eide is the central character in this well-written novel that begins in the late 19th century and continues to 1937. Minnesota is the setting where the winters are as harsh as the living conditions. Many Norwegians settled in the area, among them is Thea, Ode's mother, whose pregnancy was the result of a brutal rape by a traveling salesman. Thea gives birth at the local apothecary run by Hosea and his ward, Rebekah. Thea eventually settles with them and Odd becomes the beloved "ward" of the small town when his mother dies. Odd establishes a relationship with Rebekah despite their significant age difference and they eventually flee under cover of darkness when she reveals that she is pregnant with Odd's child.

This is an extremely well-developed plot with subtle nuances, dark secrets and damaged characters who survive despite complex, harrowing circumstances. I look forward to reading more books by the talented Peter Geye. ( )

Norwegian immigrant in the lumber camps of Grand Marais. ken liked it too. Od and his fishing boat and world.

Really liked this book ( )

I love a book that isn't black and white, that explores a character's inner life and keeps me thinking after reading. The Lighthouse Road, like Safe From the Sea, is very evocative in setting without being overly poetic. Like Willa Cather, this sense of setting is intricately entwined with the people who live in the area: the characters wouldn't be who they are without the setting, and the setting wouldn't be what it is without the characters. If you long for some historical fiction that goes beyond the plot, The Lighthouse Road fits the bill. It is introspective and deep, while also straightforward and balanced. ( )