GO AS A RIVER: A Novel
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER
Set amid Colorado’s wild beauty, a heartbreaking coming-of-age story of a resilient young woman whose life is changed forever by one chance encounter. A tragic and uplifting novel of love and loss, family and survival—and hope—for readers of Great Circle, The Four Winds, and Where the Crawdads Sing.
Seventeen-year-old Victoria Nash runs the household on her family’s peach farm in the small ranch town of Iola, Colorado—the sole surviving female in a family of troubled men. Wilson Moon is a young drifter with a mysterious past, displaced from his tribal land and determined to live as he chooses.
Victoria encounters Will by chance on a street corner, a meeting that profoundly alters both of their young lives, unknowingly igniting as much passion as danger. When tragedy strikes, Victoria leaves the only life she has ever known. She flees into the surrounding mountains where she struggles to survive in the wilderness with no clear notion of what her future will bring. As the seasons change, she also charts the changes in herself, finding in the beautiful but harsh landscape the meaning and strength to move forward and rebuild all that she has lost, even as the Gunnison River threatens to submerge her homeland—its ranches, farms, and the beloved peach orchard that has been in her family for generations.
Inspired by true events surrounding the destruction of the town of Iola in the 1960s, Go as a River is a story of deeply held love in the face of hardship and loss, but also of finding courage, resilience, friendship, and, finally, home—where least expected. This stunning debut explores what it means to lead your life as if it were a river—gathering and flowing, finding a way forward even when a river is dammed.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
You’ll be captivated by this historical novel set against the harsh backdrop of rural 1940s Colorado. Since the death of her mother, Victoria has served as cook, cleaner, and farmhand to everyone on her family’s ranch. Then she meets Wilson Moon, and their forbidden love quickly blooms. Dealing with themes of heartache and healing, Shelley Read’s stunning debut takes us to Iola, Colorado, a real town that was literally washed away when the region was intentionally flooded to create the Blue Mesa Reservoir. Read’s own family has roots in the area, giving her rich, vivid insights into its history, landscape, and people. Cynthia Farrell’s straightforward narration is a great match for the everyday poetry of Read’s depictions of the small town and its people. We were swept away by Go as a River.
Customer Reviews
beautiful.
I loved this book so much. Such a beautiful story, I cried through nearly the entire thing.
Amazing!
An emotional roller coaster, yet answers so many questions that have raced through my mind since the drought we had that gave us a glimpse of what was left of Iola from under the waters of the blue mesa!
Loved it
Beautiful, gripping story paints a vivid picture of rural Colorado. I was sad when it was over.