LaRose
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4.4 • 23 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
'It is important to say that Erdrich is one of the greatest living American writers, and LaRose is brilliant' Guardian
'Warm-hearted . . . a novel remarkable for its forgiveness and sheer magnanimity' Sunday Times
Finalist for the 2016 National Books Critics Circle Award for Fiction
In this literary masterwork, Louise Erdrich, the bestselling author of The Round House and the Pulitzer Prize nominee The Plague of Doves wields her breathtaking narrative magic in an emotionally haunting contemporary tale of a tragic accident, a demand for justice, and a profound act of atonement with ancient roots in Native American culture.
Late summer in North Dakota, 1999: Landreaux Iron stalks a deer along the edge of the property bordering his own. He shoots with easy confidence but only when he staggers closer does he realise he has killed his neighbour's son.
Dusty Ravich, the deceased boy, was best friends with Landreaux's five-year-old son, LaRose. The two families have been close for years and their children played together despite going to different schools. Landreaux is horrified at what he's done; fighting off his longstanding alcoholism, he ensconces himself in a sweat lodge and prays for guidance. And there he discovers an old way of delivering justice for the wrong he's done. The next day he and his wife Emmaline deliver LaRose to the bereaved Ravich parents. Standing on the threshold of the Ravich home, they say, 'Our son will be your son now'.
LaRose is quickly absorbed into his new family. Gradually he's allowed visits with his birth family, whose grief for the son and brother they gave away mirrors that of the Raviches. The years pass and LaRose becomes the linchpin that links both families. As the Irons and the Raviches grow ever more entwined, their pain begins to subside. But when a man who nurses a grudge against Landreaux fixates on the idea that there was a cover-up the day Landreaux killed Dusty - and decides to expose this secret - he threatens the fragile peace between the two families...
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Erdrich spins a powerful, resonant story with masterly finesse. As in The Round House, she explores the quest for justice and the thirst for retribution. Again, the setting a North Dakota Ojibwe reservation and a nearby town adds complexity to the plot. Landreaux Iron, an Ojibwe man, accidentally shoots and kills the five-year-old son of his best friend, farmer Peter Ravich, who is not a member of the tribe. After a wrenching session with his Catholic priest, Father Travis, and a soul-searching prayer in a sweat lodge, Landreaux gives his own five-year-old son, LaRose, to grieving Peter and his wife, Nola, who is half-sister to Landreaux's own wife, Emmaline. In the years that follow, LaRose becomes a bridge between his two families. He also accesses powers that have distinguished his namesakes in previous generations, when LaRose was "a name both innocent and powerful, and had belonged to the family's healers." Erdrich introduces this mystical element seamlessly, in the same way that LaRose and other Ojibwes recognize and communicate with "the active presence of the spirit world." The magical aspects are lightened by scenes of everyday life: old ladies in an assisted-living home squabble about sex; teenage girls create their own homemade beauty spa. Erdrich raises suspense by introducing another, related act of retribution, culminating in a memorable and satisfying ending.
Customer Reviews
Quality writing
Author
American poet and novelist with Native American roots as evidenced by the subject matter of her work. This novel is her 15th. She's accumulated a slew of awards and prizes over the years. In 2005, she was named Associate Poet Laureate of North Dakota. Who knew that was even a thing? Not me.
Premise
The tragic accidental death of a child is followed by a demand for justice and a profound act of atonement drawn from Native American culture.
Precis
It's 1999 when Landreaux, a dude out shooting deer in the woodlands of North Dakota, accidentally pots the neighbour's 5 year-old kid. The families have always been close. The wives are half-sisters. After a trip to a sweat lodge, Landreaux and his missus decide to give their youngest, a boy named LaRose, to the bereaved parents. (That's taking sperm donation to the next level). Cue lots of family dynamics and add a trouble-making outsider who holds a grudge against Landreaux from way back.
Writing
Generally slow moving, but uplifting at times. Characters well drawn, flawed, sympathetic. Prose poetic, moody.
Bottom line
Worth reading for the quality of writing alone. Insights into Native American culture a bonus. Ms Erdrich is a class act.