Scan barcode
A review by kmcfall
The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger
emotional
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I’ve read Two books set in 1958 in the past two months. Both by writers who know how to tell great storis and write sentences that make you want to read over and over. The first of these books was set in rural Ireland—This is Happiness, by Niall Williams. The second, and the one I finished this week is The River We Remember, by William Kent Krueger.
This book was published on September 5, 2023, and noonish on that day, I put a hold on the ebook at my library. I was finally able to check it out at the end of January. Popular book!
I’ll say first off that I enjoyed the book. Well, I enjoyed it after I got into it, and I do recommend it. I gave it three stars, and for me—just like in a staff performance evaluation—3.5 stars meant the book was doing its job and was doing it pretty well.
I’ve been a huge fan of the author. His book This Tender Land is a favorite book of all time for me. I read it first as an eBook and then my husband and I read it to each other, aloud. And it the writing is gorgeous, and more than that, it tells a powerful story of an odyssey. While it’s historical fiction, It’s a book I think of as literary fiction. That is not how I would characterize The River We Remember.
William Kent Krueger sets his books—both his stand alone books and his Cork O’Connor detective series—in Minnesota, though I’ve not read the series yet.
The River We Remember is historical fiction had more of a detective novel vibe—and that’s typically not my genre. Set in a small town along the fictitious Alabaster River, the book begins with the death of prominent person that everyone hates. To a person, no one is sad about this death. He was that kind of guy.
Once I got into the book, I had a hard time putting it down. But I had a hard time liking the main character initially—he really pissed me off. 😊 And I did not get fully immersed until about halfway through. Your individual mileage may vary.
This book calls out the racism and sexism of the day. William Kent Krueger quite often features Dakota characters—and through his storylines points to the injustices done to them. Both this book and This Tender Land include descriptions of the US – Dakota War of 1862, as well as the mass arrests and executions.
Beyond that, we see the impact of trauma from WWII on several characters.
Krueger doesn’t pull punches.
And I mentioned that he did highlight the sexism of the day, but at the same time, one of the characters, a Japanese woman is continually described in diminuitive terms. She “looked small and childlike.” Her hands were tiny, etc.
Interestingly, in a Q & A with the author, he originally thought the character of the female attorney would tell the story from her perspective. And I would hope that at least she wouldn’t spend so much time focusing on the stature of Kyoko.
Okay—there’s a thing that bothered me. Friends who read the book back in September mentioned it on social media, so I knew it was coming.
LUTHERAN PASTOR FATHER GREGORY.
Do you see that?
Given where Kreuger sets his books, I would expect him to know that Lutheran clergy do not have the Father title. (I’m thinking of the female Lutheran pastors I know—goodness, they’d not be called Mother.)
I tend to geek out over location in Krueger novels. For anyone who is curious about exactly where this book may be set, follow and check out a separate video I have on that.
With everything I’ve said, I heartily recommend the book.
This book was published on September 5, 2023, and noonish on that day, I put a hold on the ebook at my library. I was finally able to check it out at the end of January. Popular book!
I’ll say first off that I enjoyed the book. Well, I enjoyed it after I got into it, and I do recommend it. I gave it three stars, and for me—just like in a staff performance evaluation—3.5 stars meant the book was doing its job and was doing it pretty well.
I’ve been a huge fan of the author. His book This Tender Land is a favorite book of all time for me. I read it first as an eBook and then my husband and I read it to each other, aloud. And it the writing is gorgeous, and more than that, it tells a powerful story of an odyssey. While it’s historical fiction, It’s a book I think of as literary fiction. That is not how I would characterize The River We Remember.
William Kent Krueger sets his books—both his stand alone books and his Cork O’Connor detective series—in Minnesota, though I’ve not read the series yet.
The River We Remember is historical fiction had more of a detective novel vibe—and that’s typically not my genre. Set in a small town along the fictitious Alabaster River, the book begins with the death of prominent person that everyone hates. To a person, no one is sad about this death. He was that kind of guy.
Once I got into the book, I had a hard time putting it down. But I had a hard time liking the main character initially—he really pissed me off. 😊 And I did not get fully immersed until about halfway through. Your individual mileage may vary.
This book calls out the racism and sexism of the day. William Kent Krueger quite often features Dakota characters—and through his storylines points to the injustices done to them. Both this book and This Tender Land include descriptions of the US – Dakota War of 1862, as well as the mass arrests and executions.
Beyond that, we see the impact of trauma from WWII on several characters.
Krueger doesn’t pull punches.
And I mentioned that he did highlight the sexism of the day, but at the same time, one of the characters, a Japanese woman is continually described in diminuitive terms. She “looked small and childlike.” Her hands were tiny, etc.
Interestingly, in a Q & A with the author, he originally thought the character of the female attorney would tell the story from her perspective. And I would hope that at least she wouldn’t spend so much time focusing on the stature of Kyoko.
Okay—there’s a thing that bothered me. Friends who read the book back in September mentioned it on social media, so I knew it was coming.
LUTHERAN PASTOR FATHER GREGORY.
Do you see that?
Given where Kreuger sets his books, I would expect him to know that Lutheran clergy do not have the Father title. (I’m thinking of the female Lutheran pastors I know—goodness, they’d not be called Mother.)
I tend to geek out over location in Krueger novels. For anyone who is curious about exactly where this book may be set, follow and check out a separate video I have on that.
With everything I’ve said, I heartily recommend the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Adult/minor relationship, Murder, Sexual assault, Racism, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, and Child abuse