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36th out of 90 books
—
77 voters
The Buffalo Soldier
by
Chris Bohjalian (Goodreads Author)
With his trademark emotional heft and storytelling skill, bestselling author Chris Bohjalian presents this resonant novel about the formation of an unconventional family–the ties that bind it, and the strains that pull it apart. Two years after their twin daughters died in a flash flood, Terry and Laura Sheldon, a Vermont state trooper and his wife, take in a foster child....more
Paperback, 432 pages
Published
February 25th 2003
by Vintage
(first published March 1st 2002)
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The last Bohjalian book I read was "Double Bind", which truly left me in a double bind. It is one of those narratives that makes you want to see the author's story board (ala the movie Memento). Bohjalian incorporated Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatspy" and my respect for him as a tremendous researcher (Midwives, Trans-Sister), expanded--he is clearly a very smart and literary guy too.
BUT, Double Bind made me feel sick. I couldn't put it down and I felt tortured by the subject matter. Upon finishin...more
BUT, Double Bind made me feel sick. I couldn't put it down and I felt tortured by the subject matter. Upon finishin...more
Bohjalian has written a touching, sometimes heart-wrenching story of a couple who experienced the tragic deaths of their twin daughters.After a long period of grieving, they consent to take in a foster child, a little black boy, named Alfred. The author sensitively approaches the topic of foster care, particularly in an interracial arrangement.Although members of this small, close-knit community exhibited care and concern regarding the couple's loss, they are less kind to Alfred's situation. His...more
This is an interesting book about a couple who suffer a terrible and unexpected loss that rends their family, the different ways they both respond to that loss, and their attempt to move forward and build a new family by taking in a foster child that they may later adopt. The portrait of the young couple working through these difficulties is contrasted with that of their neighbors, an older retired couple who have apparently weathered the stresses that can destroy the closest of marriages. The o...more
Terry and Laura Sheldon are grieving over the death of their twin daughters in a flash flood and it's a strain on their marriage. They decide to foster a 10 year old African American boy. Laura and Alfred begin to bond, but Terry can't seem to relate to him. Terry has a love affair which threatens to destroy their marriage. Neighbors of the Sheldons, Alice and Paul Hebert, are drawn to Alfred and Paul gives him a book about the Buffalo Soldiers, an African American Army regiment during the Civil...more
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This is the second book of Chris Bohjalian's I've read - the first was Midwives, years ago, and I loved it. Bohjalian will be one of the authors at the Book Retreat Lisa and I are going to in Vermont in April, so I wanted to read another of his, and I really liked it a lot. I'd forgotten what Buffalo soldiers were...and although the book is not about Buffalo soldiers at all, it makes me want to read about them. The book is actually about how a young couple in northern Vermont traverse their grie...more
Good! When I realized that the author of this novel is also the author of MIDWIVES, a book I read several years ago --and enjoyed--, I had to read this one immediately. I was not disappointed. The story is believeable most of the time: some of the events at the novel's end are a little too contrived, and the ending worked out almost too well, BUT the story and the character development are good.
The chapter heading quotes about the Buffalo soldiers work very well and offer an insightful parallel...more
The chapter heading quotes about the Buffalo soldiers work very well and offer an insightful parallel...more
In "The Buffalo Soldier", author Chris Bohjalian gives the reader two stories for the price of one: the first story being that of Terry and Laura Sheldon and their foster child Alfred, and the second being the story of George Rowe, "the buffalo soldier." Just as the circumstances and emotions surrounding the Sheldon girls' tragic deaths is a constant theme throughout the novel, so is the story of the buffalo soldiers. Perhaps it was because I listened to this novel on audio, but it is not appare...more
This was the most amazing book. The characters were so vivid and engaging I would miss them and wonder what they were doing while I was at work. Parallel tracks: each chapter begins with a quotation from a diary of one of the "buffalo soldiers" (black cavalry soldiers who fought the Indians post civil war in the west)These are followed by a chapter told by one of the contemporary characters. The modern story revolves around a couple, Laura and Terry, who live in Cornish VT, and have lost their t...more
2 likes · like · see review
Ahh Bohjalian. I've loved everyone of his books, and this did not disappoint.
Alfred is a 10-year old African-American foster-child who has been shuttled from home to home, until he is placed with Laura and Terry. This couple is grieving for their 9-year old twin daughters drowned in a flood two years before.
Alfred is sullen until the next door neighbor, Paul Herbert introduces him to the buffalo soldiers and horses. What I love is how Bohjalian weaves in materials - The Great Gatsby in The Dou...more
Alfred is a 10-year old African-American foster-child who has been shuttled from home to home, until he is placed with Laura and Terry. This couple is grieving for their 9-year old twin daughters drowned in a flood two years before.
Alfred is sullen until the next door neighbor, Paul Herbert introduces him to the buffalo soldiers and horses. What I love is how Bohjalian weaves in materials - The Great Gatsby in The Dou...more
I found this book a bit slow to get into at first. There is a lot of backstory and a lot of description, which is nice -- but once I'm already invested in a story. I didn't really start caring about the characters until at least halfway through, and then I was mad at the dumb choices some of the characters had made. However, I really wanted to know how everything worked out for everyone by the end, so I started really getting into it by the last third of the book.
I have a few quibbles with the n...more
I have a few quibbles with the n...more
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I hate to let a "c'mon...really?" ending take away from what is otherwise a lush and engaging portrayal of a foster family's shuffling progress. I can't imagine a foster child story that doesn't explore the theme of how disparate people become a family, but Bohjalian takes it a step further. He explores not only how a young child and parent come to be a family, but how one's needs as an adult child, spouse, sibling, or grandparent aren't always met by the person who "should" fill that role. The...more
When trajedy strikes, it's all in what you decide to do next--get busy living, or escape from the reality of it.
For whatever reason, the author choose to intertwine the story of three unconventional families. Terry and Laura Sheldon have just taken in an African American foster boy in a very white area. While the Terry and Laura struggle through recent grief, betrayal, and secrets, their foster child, Alfred, befriends an old, retired professor, Paul Herbert, who teaches him about Buffalo Soldie...more
For whatever reason, the author choose to intertwine the story of three unconventional families. Terry and Laura Sheldon have just taken in an African American foster boy in a very white area. While the Terry and Laura struggle through recent grief, betrayal, and secrets, their foster child, Alfred, befriends an old, retired professor, Paul Herbert, who teaches him about Buffalo Soldie...more
This is Bohjalian's 8th novel, but my first read of his work. The novel is set in Vermont and deals with the trials faced by a couple who have recently lost two daughters in a flash flood. As they attempt to regroup, they become the foster parents of an African-American boy.
Bohjalian's chapter titles indicate the narrative perspective, but unlike Faulkner's AS I LAY DYING, Bohjalian uses third person limited narration; nevertheless, the effect is to read the same story from multiple angles, gai...more
Bohjalian's chapter titles indicate the narrative perspective, but unlike Faulkner's AS I LAY DYING, Bohjalian uses third person limited narration; nevertheless, the effect is to read the same story from multiple angles, gai...more
Terry, a Vermont state trooper, and his wife, Laura, who works at the local animal shelter, lost their twin daughters in a flood two years before they bring Alfred, an African-American foster child into their home. Alfred has been in so many foster homes that in the beginning he can't trust that he will be any more secure here than he has been before. Terry has an affair and separates from their family. In the meantime, Alfred's life changes through his relationships with Laura, the retired hist...more
Chris Bohjalian reminds me a bit of John Irving in his novels--perhaps with a touch of Richard Russo and the late great John Gardner. He writes about characters who have endured terrible tragedy and how that tragedy impacts their lives. In this book Terry and Laura Sheldon have lost their twin daughters to a monstrous flood that sweeps the children to their death. In an effort to heal her marriage and her pain, Laura decides to become a foster parent, and Terry reluctantly accedes to her plan. T...more
Chris Bohjalian has done it again. This is the second book of his that I have read. His books seem to really tug at the heartstrings and make you think, "What would I do in this situation?" It has been two years since Terry and Laura Sheldon have lost their twin girls in a horrendous flood. They both are different people since that instance, but still are trying to get their lives back in order. When Alfred is brought into their lives, you can start to see a change in them both. Laura for the be...more
Essentially the story of Terry and Laura who lost twin daughters in a Vermont flood and then two years later decided to take in a black foster son. They each have grieved differently after their daughters' deaths and they each relate to Alfred, the foster son, differently. Their elderly neighbors, Ruth and Paul Hebert, also form a bond with Alfred, mainly centering of the horse that Paul and Alfred care for and ride. Alfred has bounced around the child protective services agencies going from one...more
Anyone who expects this book to be about the Buffalo soldiers will be disappointed. The connection to the contemporary foster child Alfred becomes more clear as the chapters unfold, but at first the fact that each chapter begins with a historical excerpt from/about Buffalo soldiers is a bit puzzling. After I was done, I noticed this quote on a page before the prologue: "If you know your history, Then you would know where you coming from" -- BOB MARLEY, "Buffalo Soldier". That is a hint as to how...more
Very uplifting account of a marriage recovering after the drowning of their twin daughters. Bohjalian as usual provides a vivid account of the rhythms of life in rural in northern Vermont, with the narrative told by each of his characters in turn. The couple, Terry, a state trooper, and, Laura, who runs an animal shelter, have achieved a fair accommodation to the tragedy two years later. However, the taking in of a black 10-year old boy, Alfred, into foster care, among other events, begins to sh...more
I really liked this book. It was really engrossing and the pages turned quickly. The characters are well developed and believable, and the story is well plotted.
The 'Buffalo soldier' in the story is a young black foster child in a small Vermont town. The stories of his foster parents who lost two daughters in a flood are also told. There is a description of a bad rain storm and a flooding stream at the beginning, which I found hard to believe was written BEFORE Hurricane Irene hit Vermont last...more
The 'Buffalo soldier' in the story is a young black foster child in a small Vermont town. The stories of his foster parents who lost two daughters in a flood are also told. There is a description of a bad rain storm and a flooding stream at the beginning, which I found hard to believe was written BEFORE Hurricane Irene hit Vermont last...more
As usual, Bohjalian writes about the North East Kingdom so I would enjoy those references even if I didn’t also love the book. A white family takes in a 10 year old black foster child two years after the death of their 9 year old twin girls. The father has a hard time relating to the child, the mother embraces the child and begins to come out of her depression, the child is always waiting for the bottom to fall out as in all his other placements. In the meantime, the child, Alfred, bonds with an...more
Terry and Laura Sheldon's lives get turned upside-down when their twin girls die in a flash flood. Their marriage is brittle as they invite a foster child into their home. Alfred is a 10 year-old African-American boy, who has been shuffled from foster home to foster home and can't trust that he may be here to stay. Enter kind elderly neighbors next door, who teach Alfred about the Buffalo Soldiers from the Civil War who were known for the honesty and integrity which inspires the child.
The plot h...more
The plot h...more
This book is set in Vermont and it is about an African-American foster child who is taken in by a couple who have suffered a terrible tragedy when their twin daughters drown in a flash flood.
A very good book. I am African-American and do not usually read or like stories where an African-American character is "saved" by whites (i.e. Blindside and too many others books and movies to mention). The author develops the characters in the novel so completely that stereotypes don't usually apply. The bo...more
A very good book. I am African-American and do not usually read or like stories where an African-American character is "saved" by whites (i.e. Blindside and too many others books and movies to mention). The author develops the characters in the novel so completely that stereotypes don't usually apply. The bo...more
Umm...I think I may be almost over my Chris Bohjalian kick. I think I just read 5 of his books in a row and I'm starting to see familiar patterns in the way he writes.
But that's not to say anything particularly negative about this book. Bohjalian is a good storyteller. In this story a couple, devastated by the loss of their twin daughters, take in an African-American foster son. Themes include trust, the Buffalo Soldiers, adultery. Lots of jagged edges. So I was a little disappointed that the en...more
But that's not to say anything particularly negative about this book. Bohjalian is a good storyteller. In this story a couple, devastated by the loss of their twin daughters, take in an African-American foster son. Themes include trust, the Buffalo Soldiers, adultery. Lots of jagged edges. So I was a little disappointed that the en...more
Buffalo Soldier has all the ingredients of a good novel, a rural setting in Vermont, a marriage struggling to stay afloat after the tragic death of two young children, a nutty brother in law and a newly introduced mistress, (overall the book is about human nature when placed under extreme duress due to tragedy) but I found this book some what predictable and dry---my least favorite Chris Bohjalian book to date. He wrote this in the early 2000's and it is clear to see that he has gotten increasin...more
* SPOILER ALERT* While I really liked certain aspects of this book, there were times that it read like a trashy romance novel. Maybe I am just being cynical. One of the central themes hit very close to home, as I had an uncle that drowned when he was two. Chris does a great job exploring the psychology and the emotional implications of the tragedy but it seemed like he ran out of steam at the end, not knowing how to resolve everything quickly. I did not like the ending.
I did enjoy the character...more
I did enjoy the character...more
Terry and Laura Sheldon are trying to move forward after losing their twin daughters in a flood. They agree to foster a young black child, Alfred, but it is a struggle to make the unconventional family meld. As his past and feelings unfold to the reader, we better understand Alfred and his relationships with the Sheldons and other community members. I enjoyed the well-written story, but I would have liked to know more about how these relationships formed. The other characters were not privy to t...more
I thought this book was quite sad. It was an interesting family drama however...and I was really curious about how it would all turn out in the end which is why I did like it. Yet, there was a melancholy feeling about it from the beginning that never left me. I didn't love any of the characters except the Heberts who lived across the street. (Alfred wasn't well-developed enough as a character to be likable, I thought) All in all it was an interesting, quiet story that helped pass a lazy weekend....more
I'm not sure why I liked this book so much. There were things to pick at-- mostly the fact that the Buffalo Soldier reference (like the foster child himself) was simply a backdrop against which to paint a story of marital and familial agony. The final plot twists at the end were more than just a bit over the top.
But I still loved the book, the frailty of the strong Terry, and the crushing description of how to mend lives that shatter. And I liked the way it ended--with everyone doing the (painfu...more
But I still loved the book, the frailty of the strong Terry, and the crushing description of how to mend lives that shatter. And I liked the way it ended--with everyone doing the (painfu...more
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Chris Bohjalian is the author of sixteen books, including The Light in the Ruins, arriving July 9, 2013 from Doubleday. Set in Florence and rural Tuscany between 1943 and 1955, it began as a re-imaginging of "Romeo and Juliet."
His other books include the New York Times bestsellers, The Sandcastle Girls, The Night Strangers, Secrets of Eden, Skeletons at the Feast, The Double Bind, Before Your Know...more
More about Chris Bohjalian...
His other books include the New York Times bestsellers, The Sandcastle Girls, The Night Strangers, Secrets of Eden, Skeletons at the Feast, The Double Bind, Before Your Know...more
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Feb 15, 2011 06:52am