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A review by khopeisz
The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
4.25
what a beautifully written and layered story. perfect summer literary read. I felt connected to nearly every character, even the minor ones (though I felt an appropriate distance from the patriarchs of the Van Laar family).
Some spoilers ahead.
I thought it interesting as more of a meta-narrative about the author and the structure of the story that the book practically omits mentioning indigenous people in all conversations about land and ownership. There’s a sentence about them and that’s it. Would the social commentary, the driving force of the novel, have collapsed had the author fully engaged in discussion about the indigenous people of the Adirondack region? Would that have upset the somewhat black and white portrayal as Locals=good guys, wealthy outsiders=bad guys? And I say somewhat black and white because the one bad local, Sluiter, is written with more likeability than not. We’ve never been given proof that he committed those crimes, and it is implied that while he is kinda a gross guy, during a moment in which he could have taken advantage of a young girl (Tracy) it is he (likely) who comes to her aid. So if we were to address that the locals, I.e. good guys, themselves were not originally locals…would the scales have tipped? Moore is occupied with providing Justice in this book (which, in todays publishing world of books with loose non-endings, I’m happy about); would she have felt compelled to supply Justice to locals whose own origins were brought into question? Or are the metrics of morality here reserved only for poor white people vs wealthy white people, blue vs white collar, with no attention paid to nonwhites who may occupy either class? The omission of a thorough examination of the indigenous life was just more interesting to me as a meta-observation. I’m not sure how much of this ramble will make sense. I have a fever :/
I think it should also be noted that while there are moments of tension in this book, it is not a genre thriller. It is plotty, but not a hardcore character study. You shadow characters and somewhat understand them through moments of conversation and reflection. Still, you will like every character you are supposed to like and dislike every character you are supposed to dislike. And while the fate of Bear Van Laar did not surprise me, it did sadden me.
My main complaint (wasn’t the earlier ramble a complaint? it was just a ramble!) was the believability of TJ’s leaving Barbara out without much resources for several months. I don’t know what adult would do that? Like put her up in a motel or something, but leave her to fend for herself? I know these folks are all traumatized, but is trauma just an all encompassing excuse for reasoning away motivations that don’t make sense? Idk 🤷🏾♀️ I have a fever!!
Overall, I enjoyed this book thoroughly—but Liz Moore I have questions!
Some spoilers ahead.
I thought it interesting as more of a meta-narrative about the author and the structure of the story that the book practically omits mentioning indigenous people in all conversations about land and ownership. There’s a sentence about them and that’s it. Would the social commentary, the driving force of the novel, have collapsed had the author fully engaged in discussion about the indigenous people of the Adirondack region? Would that have upset the somewhat black and white portrayal as Locals=good guys, wealthy outsiders=bad guys? And I say somewhat black and white because the one bad local, Sluiter, is written with more likeability than not. We’ve never been given proof that he committed those crimes, and it is implied that while he is kinda a gross guy, during a moment in which he could have taken advantage of a young girl (Tracy) it is he (likely) who comes to her aid. So if we were to address that the locals, I.e. good guys, themselves were not originally locals…would the scales have tipped? Moore is occupied with providing Justice in this book (which, in todays publishing world of books with loose non-endings, I’m happy about); would she have felt compelled to supply Justice to locals whose own origins were brought into question? Or are the metrics of morality here reserved only for poor white people vs wealthy white people, blue vs white collar, with no attention paid to nonwhites who may occupy either class? The omission of a thorough examination of the indigenous life was just more interesting to me as a meta-observation. I’m not sure how much of this ramble will make sense. I have a fever :/
I think it should also be noted that while there are moments of tension in this book, it is not a genre thriller. It is plotty, but not a hardcore character study. You shadow characters and somewhat understand them through moments of conversation and reflection. Still, you will like every character you are supposed to like and dislike every character you are supposed to dislike. And while the fate of Bear Van Laar did not surprise me, it did sadden me.
My main complaint (wasn’t the earlier ramble a complaint? it was just a ramble!) was the believability of TJ’s leaving Barbara out without much resources for several months. I don’t know what adult would do that? Like put her up in a motel or something, but leave her to fend for herself? I know these folks are all traumatized, but is trauma just an all encompassing excuse for reasoning away motivations that don’t make sense? Idk 🤷🏾♀️ I have a fever!!
Overall, I enjoyed this book thoroughly—but Liz Moore I have questions!