The Riverhouse Stories: How Pubah S. Queen and Lazy LaRue Save the World

by Andrea Carlisle, Mary Narkiewicz (Illustrator)

Book by Andrea Carlisle

Genres: Fiction, LGBT, Lesbian Fiction, Short Stories

125 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1989

About the author

Born in North Dakota and grew up in the Midwest, but I've also lived for short periods of time on the east coast and in Canada, and Kuwait. For the past four decades, I've resided on a houseboat outside of Portland, Oregon, in the company of various animals, including cats, dogs, otters, and beavers, as well as birds: eagles, osprey, herons, hawks, cormorants, and a wide variety of songbirds. Published a book of fiction, The Riverhouse Stories, and a memoir of my river life in the form of a glossary of houseboat terms, The River Runs Under It: 40 Years on a Houseboat in Oregon. Stories, essays, poems, and articles have appeared in various publications over the years, most recently in McSweeney's and Yes magazine.

Currently, I'm working on a collection of essays on the topic of aging because I'm getting old, and I'm curious and opinionated about the whole experience. This collection will be published by OSU Press in Spring, 2021.

To learn more, you can visit andreacarlisle.com.

(Author illustration by Enkhbayar Munkh-Erdene.)

Reviews

[Jan Priddy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this long ago and loved it!

[Carolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an extraordinary little book, that came as a complete surprise! A friend sent to me in the mail, and I started to read from the moment I ripped open the envelope (wondering what I'd forgotten that I'd ordered) before remembering that she'd mentioned it. It's not really like any book I've read in a long time. I'm in total agreement with Ursula K. LeGuin's note on the book that it's "the most good-natured book I've ever read." I loved the little drawings (reminded me somewhat of Robert Gipe's) and the DIY off-the-grid attitude of it all.

[Jerene Merritt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Andrea Carlisle's "The Riverhouse Stories" transcends typical book categories. Andrea's readers can participate in an open-heartedly presented world of characters bounded by humor, wisdom, and above all, love. I return to her book periodically, and find more there for myself each time. Mary Narkiewicz's fanciful illustrations leave space for our imaginations, and pair perfectly with these stories.

[Mary Narkiewicz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely , unique creation.. beautifully written

[Ruth Gibian · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is beloved. I discovered it when it was given to me as a gift when it was first published, in part because it was about the part of the world I love best, Oregon. I read and reread the lovely, short pieces, then read them out loud with my sweetheart. Now, many years later, during this period of confinement, I read them with that same sweetheart and our two (mostly) grown children, one each evening before we retreated to our own spaces of the house for the night. How delightful that the young adults loved these stories as much as their parents. Lazy La Rue loves Pubah S. Queen, and these stories are tidbits of their lives on their houseboat outside of Portland. The voice is what makes the book; Carlisle's tone is intentionally and stylistically simple, but it must have taken oodles of edits to get it that way. Most of the humor has stood up extremely well to the test of time, with "The Dads" still weighing in as some of the best read-aloud pages I've ever encountered. There is so much love here: love of each other, love of quirks, love of friends, love of nature and animals, love of growing and learning. There is a section at the end that is set apart from the rest, where Lazy dreams of flying in a hot-air balloon, which I don't remember being as in love with way back when and still didn't love as much. Still, we were all so sad when our nightly reading about Pubah and Lazy was over.

[Michelle]

I bought a second or third or fourth hand copy, a bit water damaged (fitting, though, for a book about living on a river), which came with the following inscription from 1989: "Because this is the first book that gave me a vision of partnering that appealed to me — and because you're someone I would like to try that with." Which sums it up very nicely, I think.

[India Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

The kindest book in the world. It reminds me, most of all, of the friends I grew up loving. Their creativity and love for the universe. It also reminds me of being a child and now an adult transformed into a childlike nature by loving. It’s just so sweet y’all

[Margo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely, deceptively simple linked stories that draw you into the quietly magical embrace of two women and their world.

[SueB · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely, sweet book. wonderful to read aloud

[Elese · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the books that feels like balm to a weary or tender heart. Collection of short stories about the same characters who show love, curiosity, and delight in everyday circumstances.

[Linda Joy]

I loved this book, it was fun, imaginative, light hearted.

[Favor · Rating 4 out of 5]

I go back to this one every few years. Because it's sweet and hopeful and about two dykes in love on a houseboat. There's a hot air balloon and love and family.

[Martha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just re-read this old favorite and found it as lovely as ever.