Bottomland
A Novel
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
“A lyrical, at times mysterious, and dreamy tale of family ties . . . An intriguing, modern take on a classic American landscape” (Kirkus Reviews).
At once intimate and sweeping, Bottomland follows the Hess family in the years after World War I, as they attempt to rid themselves of the anti-German sentiment that left a stain on their name. But when the youngest two daughters vanish in the middle of the night, the family must piece together what happened while struggling to maintain their life on the unforgiving Iowa plains. In the weeks after Esther and Myrle’s disappearance, their siblings desperately search for them, through the stark farmlands to the unfamiliar world of far-off Chicago. Have the girls run away to another farm? Have they gone to the city to seek a new life? Or were they abducted? Ostracized and misunderstood in their small town in the wake of the war, the Hesses fear the worst.
From the acclaimed author of The Quickening, “Bottomland is more than a literary mystery. It’s a trance, a poem, a lamentation, a benediction. And it’s breathtaking. As in: remind yourself to breathe” (Rebecca Makkai, author of The Great Believers).
“Hoover skillfully interweaves many of the Hess family members’ narratives. Her descriptions of the bleak rural landscape are chilling. Fans of Jim Harrison’s Legends of the Fall will enjoy the plot; Willa Cather enthusiasts will relish the setting; and Theodore Dreiser readers will savor the gritty characterizations.” —Library Journal (starred review)
“There are many compelling things about Michelle Hoover’s potent new novel, Bottomland, not least of all her austere style and its visceral punch.” —The Boston Globe
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In her second novel, Hoover (The Quickening) presents a multigenerational family saga. Set in the Iowa plains in the years surrounding World War I, the book tells the story of the Hess family from the perspectives of the patriarch, a German immigrant, and four of his six children. As anti-German sentiment spreads around them and has irreversible impact on each of their lives, the two youngest Hess daughters vanish in the middle of the night. Through shifts in points of view, the story spans the years before, during, and after the war as the central mystery unfolds. Nan, the eldest daughter, struggles to keep the family together after the death of their mother and wonders what role she might have played in her sisters' disappearance. Her father, Jon Julius, haunted by his past and wondering about its bearing on his present, traces his path since immigrating from Germany, seeking farmland in Iowa, and starting a family. The youngest brother, Lee, recalls his time in the army as he travels through Chicago in search of his missing sisters. Though it sometimes seems like information is obscured in order to maintain the mysterious aspects of the narrative, Hoover's well-formed characters propel a consistently compelling tale.
