True North

This is a beautifully written novel about the ways that the sins of the parents are visited on the children. David Burkett is a fourth generation member of a family responsible for the deforestation, in true "robber baron" style, of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Burkett's father is even further flawed. Among other things, he has been a serial statutory rapist throughout David's life. As he grows (during the novel) from early teens through the middle of his 30s, David, an intellectual who wants no part of his father's business dealings, becomes obsessed with discoving, and writing about, the depths of his family's depravations of greed and ecological disaster. And yet he can't get away from the fact that it is only the fact that he is a show more child of privilege that allows him to live his live this way. David's relationship with his sister, his parents, and the various women he becomes are mostly well drawn. His sister, Cynthia, is a particularly well developed character. In addition, and extremely importantly in terms of the book's overall impact, Harrison's descriptions of many of the natural settings of the Upper Peninsula are admirably rendered. You really feel like you're there.

About two thirds of the way through the novel, however, I grew a bit tired of living inside this character's head. His philosophical meanderings, and the things that occur to him about himself as the narrative rolls along, start to become repetitive. The wonderful quality of the writing, however, pulled me a long nevertheless, and overall with is a terrific novel. show less

Protagonist David Burkett is descended from a line of wealthy timber barons in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. He is part of a dysfunctional family. His alcoholic father takes advantage of underage girls. David wishes his he and his father could have an ordinary relationship but is appalled at his debauchery. David feels a sense of guilt for his ancestors’ role in the destruction of natural resources and their corrupt actions against the local people. He is obsessed with making amends but is uncertain how to go about it. He turns to writing. He gets involved with a number of women but has trouble forming lasting bonds. We follow David’s life as he searches for direction.

I have mixed feeling about this book. I appreciated the show more writing, especially the sense of place and descriptions of the natural world. I particularly liked the dog, a wonderful character – probably the most likeable of the bunch. The flow is choppy, and the ending did not work for me. This is my first book by this author, and I liked it enough to read more of Harrison’s work.

3.5 show less

I found the book difficult to enter; it's a really specific voice, and the tale depends on knowledge of a broad range of characters and circumstances. But once the voice is assimilated, and once the milieu solidifies around you, the book picks up momentum and begins to unfold. The scent of things awakens. The last third of the book, with the currents of what came before bearing it up, is masterful.

Listening to the audio version I was beginning to tire of the main character's quest for proof of self but I kept hoping "something" would evolve. I think I'm glad I made it to the end but it seemed to take an awfully long time to spin out the story. I found Carla very appealing as she made her appearances amid the humans. He did manage to produce an array of inter-related people that were described to the point where I found I could see and understand them enough to keep me going to find out what would happen to them.

A story telling of a family from northern Michigan whose father was brutal and mother mentally incapable of closeness. Once again JH makes a wealthy, dysfuntional family appear understandable and entertaining to his readers.

An enjoyable read, although too long and a tad repetitive. There's enough good writing to help you stay with it, though.

If the sins of the fathers are visited on the sons, what should a son do to provide moral recompense? In Harrison's earnest, initially riveting new novel, narrator David Burkett decides as a teenager in the 1960s that he must rectify the ecological damage done to his beloved Upper Peninsula area of Michigan by his rapacious timber baron ancestors. More immediately, he vows to tell the world about the rapes and abuses committed by his alcoholic father, a charismatic Yale graduate with an egregious sense of entitlement. After a foray into organized religion, David finds spiritual solace in the stark natural world, described by Harrison in soaring prose. Unable to sustain emotional connection with any woman other than his older sister, show more David has brief liaisons with four women, but he feels more pain over the death of his dog than of his marriage. Meanwhile, he spends decades working on a history of his despised family, only to realize that he is a dud as a writer. By this time, he's in his late 30s, a man who has never achieved maturity because his father hangs like an albatross around his neck. A master of surprise endings (Dalva, etc.), Harrison pulls off a bravura climax when David attempts to reconcile with his feckless father. By this time, though, the reader may have tired of the monochromatic narrative, composed mainly of David's anguished introspection and depressed dreams. Still, Harrison's tragic sense of history and his ironic insight into the depravities of human nature are as potent as ever and bring deeper meaning to his (eventually) redemptive tale.
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