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The Great Offshore Grounds
A wildly original, cross-country novel that subverts a long tradition of family narratives and casts new light on the mythologies--national, individual, and collective--that drive and define us.
On the day of their estranged father's wedding, half sisters Cheyenne and Livy set off to claim their inheritance. It's been years since the two have seen each other. Cheyenne is newly back in Seattle, crashing with Livy after a failed marriage and a series of dead ends. Livy works refinishing boats, her resentment against her freeloading sister growing as she tamps down dreams of fishing off the coast of Alaska. But the promise of a shot at financial security brings the two together to claim what's theirs. Except, instead of money, what their father gives them is information--a name--which both reveals a stunning family secret and compels them to come to grips with it. In the face of their new reality, the sisters and their adopted brother each set out on journeys that will test their faith in one another, as well as their definitions of freedom.
Moving from Seattle's underground to the docks of the Far North, from the hideaways of the southern swamps to the storied reaches of the Great Offshore Grounds, Vanessa Veselka spins a tale with boundless verve, linguistic vitality, and undeniable tenderness.
On the day of their estranged father's wedding, half sisters Cheyenne and Livy set off to claim their inheritance. It's been years since the two have seen each other. Cheyenne is newly back in Seattle, crashing with Livy after a failed marriage and a series of dead ends. Livy works refinishing boats, her resentment against her freeloading sister growing as she tamps down dreams of fishing off the coast of Alaska. But the promise of a shot at financial security brings the two together to claim what's theirs. Except, instead of money, what their father gives them is information--a name--which both reveals a stunning family secret and compels them to come to grips with it. In the face of their new reality, the sisters and their adopted brother each set out on journeys that will test their faith in one another, as well as their definitions of freedom.
Moving from Seattle's underground to the docks of the Far North, from the hideaways of the southern swamps to the storied reaches of the Great Offshore Grounds, Vanessa Veselka spins a tale with boundless verve, linguistic vitality, and undeniable tenderness.
448 pages, Hardcover
First published August 25, 2020
163 people are currently reading
8966 people want to read
About the author
Vanessa Veselka
9 books301 followersVanessa Veselka is a writer and musician living in Portland, Oregon. She has been, at various times, a teenage runaway, a sex-worker, a union organizer, a student of paleontology, an expatriate, an independent record label owner, a train-hopper, a waitress, and a mother. Her work has appeared in Bust, Bitch, Maxmum Rock ’n’ Roll, Yeti Magazine and Tin House. Zazen is her first novel.
A special note for the Goodreads community... I am not a critic. I leave that task to others. Writing books is something like trying to catch a handful of water in a stream; we get what we get at that moment. I only post books I like and I give everyone five stars.
A special note for the Goodreads community... I am not a critic. I leave that task to others. Writing books is something like trying to catch a handful of water in a stream; we get what we get at that moment. I only post books I like and I give everyone five stars.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 325 reviews
August 4, 2020
A magnificent beast of a novel. Utterly engrossing. Original. One of the rare novels that understands the realities of American poverty. Epic.
October 7, 2020
I can’t say that all of its threads come together in a completely satisfying manner, but there is so very much about this book that I love: its intimate, compassionate portrait of the novel’s complicated, problematic, stubborn, and very much alive cast of characters; and its willingness to burrow into the scary, maddening realities of what living hand-to-mouth in our inequitable country can be like for so many. Veselka’s writing is at turns glib, emotional, poetic, surreal, and incisive, and her voice has a bracing confidence that is entirely compelling. I look forward to seeking out more of her work.
November 17, 2020
National Book Award for Fiction Longlist 2020. Veselka’s character-driven novel explores extreme individualism within a family. We meet the four main characters when they gather for the wedding of their father, Cyril. There is Kirsten, his ex-partner who is also a witch and belongs to a coven; their daughters Cheyenne and Livy, who were born the same day, but only one of them to Kirsten; and Essex, who was semi-adopted when he was 11 years old and living on the streets. Cyril magnanimously gives the girls the name of the other mother as his gift to them—the one that didn’t want children, but wanted to chase the North Star.
The sisters drive to Boston, hoping to find Ann, but she isn’t there. Cheyenne continues to follow the leads to find Ann, while Livy heads to Alaska to become a sailor’s apprentice and protest offshore drilling. Essex decides he wants to belong to something larger than himself and joins the Marines. Meanwhile, Kirsten gets a terminal cancer diagnosis and summons them for a final reconciliation.
Veselka’s story is gritty and unsentimental, and espouses an anti-capitalist point-of-view. Despite her talent at writing, I found this one too ‘woo-woo’ to find engaging.
The sisters drive to Boston, hoping to find Ann, but she isn’t there. Cheyenne continues to follow the leads to find Ann, while Livy heads to Alaska to become a sailor’s apprentice and protest offshore drilling. Essex decides he wants to belong to something larger than himself and joins the Marines. Meanwhile, Kirsten gets a terminal cancer diagnosis and summons them for a final reconciliation.
Veselka’s story is gritty and unsentimental, and espouses an anti-capitalist point-of-view. Despite her talent at writing, I found this one too ‘woo-woo’ to find engaging.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
did-not-finish
September 26, 2020I know! This book is being given highest acclaim, was on the Millions list, is on the National Book Award longlist... I have forced my way to the halfway point and just need to set it aside. (Change my mind?)
October 16, 2020
Maybe 2.5 stars // Oof. I'm sorry.
I didn't like this. I tried to like it, I really tried. I even started over, in order to clear my head and give it my full attention. Normally, I don't need characters to be "likable" in order to invest in a story. In fact, I usually gravitate to "unlikable" characters. (I hate that term tbh). But I'm reading a deeply character-driven novel, I'm gonna need...well, characters. Essex, for example, seemed like the kind of character who could only exist in a book. He didn't feel real to me.
I can't put my finger on it, but I didn't care about any of this. It felt like it was trying so hard to be different and "edgy" and New Age-y or something. It just kept jumping from one thing to the next. It tried to cram way too much stuff into the narrative, which meant the book never had any time to breathe. It's not all bad, but it missed the mark for me. Not to end on a downer, I will say I could've had an entire book on Kirsten.
I didn't like this. I tried to like it, I really tried. I even started over, in order to clear my head and give it my full attention. Normally, I don't need characters to be "likable" in order to invest in a story. In fact, I usually gravitate to "unlikable" characters. (I hate that term tbh). But I'm reading a deeply character-driven novel, I'm gonna need...well, characters. Essex, for example, seemed like the kind of character who could only exist in a book. He didn't feel real to me.
I can't put my finger on it, but I didn't care about any of this. It felt like it was trying so hard to be different and "edgy" and New Age-y or something. It just kept jumping from one thing to the next. It tried to cram way too much stuff into the narrative, which meant the book never had any time to breathe. It's not all bad, but it missed the mark for me. Not to end on a downer, I will say I could've had an entire book on Kirsten.
May 7, 2020
Cheyenne and Livy are off to their father's wedding. They are half sisters--same dad, different moms, raised by one mother with no idea of who the other mother might be. Since he has never supported them in any way, they are hopeful that there might be some money involved which would be awesome since they are--call it what you will--financially insecure, struggling, or just plain poor. He has specially requested that they attend his wedding which has them hoping; but at the very least, they will get something to eat besides Ramen and have brought along storage containers to make the most of the buffet.
But their father does not have any money for them. He has a name, possibly of the other mother. This sets them on something of across-country quest, but a quest performed with cheap rental cars and a vat of peanut butter to provide food for the trip. Livy gives up and goes back to fishing in Alaska, but Cheyenne, thinking that it is her mother she's seeking, keeps going.
The characters are appealing and you care about them, but at the same time you'll want to shake them. Their whole determination to "stick it to the man" has left them so poor almost everything they do becomes a high stakes game. They are constantly dependent on the kindness of strangers, and one of the most touching things in "The Great Offshore Grounds" is how often strangers rise to the occasion.
The pros about this novel is that it is very different, with characters we infrequently meet in situations that you don't want to believe but you know are probably true. The cons? It's hard to see such bright, driven, creative women work so hard for so little. But those are the times we live in.
Thanks to Knopf and Netgalley for access to this fine novel.
~~Candace Siegle, Greedy Reader
But their father does not have any money for them. He has a name, possibly of the other mother. This sets them on something of across-country quest, but a quest performed with cheap rental cars and a vat of peanut butter to provide food for the trip. Livy gives up and goes back to fishing in Alaska, but Cheyenne, thinking that it is her mother she's seeking, keeps going.
The characters are appealing and you care about them, but at the same time you'll want to shake them. Their whole determination to "stick it to the man" has left them so poor almost everything they do becomes a high stakes game. They are constantly dependent on the kindness of strangers, and one of the most touching things in "The Great Offshore Grounds" is how often strangers rise to the occasion.
The pros about this novel is that it is very different, with characters we infrequently meet in situations that you don't want to believe but you know are probably true. The cons? It's hard to see such bright, driven, creative women work so hard for so little. But those are the times we live in.
Thanks to Knopf and Netgalley for access to this fine novel.
~~Candace Siegle, Greedy Reader
January 24, 2021
Dense where it shouldn't be dense. Not enough magic for magical realism, too outlandish for realism. I liked the themes but it felt way too long. And no way is anyone rolling their own tampons out of toilet paper.
September 15, 2020
I read this remarkable rich book slowly, ten and twenty pages at a time, falling in love with the characters, then falling in love with them again. These are the hard lives of the working class, the service class, the poor. But these are also lives I have lived, or lives like them. This book is a great American novel, an East of Eden for the people of right now. It is filled with personal tragedy and only the smallest of triumph, and it feels mythic and personal all at once.
September 4, 2020
I'm a huge fan of Zazen and was disappointed to find myself incredibly underwhelmed by this one. I listened to it on audio, and sometimes when I'm 'meh' on an audiobook, I wonder if my reaction would have been different if I'd read the book instead.
TGOG is a sprawling and vast thing that dives deeply into dysfunctional family dynamics, which is sometimes totally my thing, but all of the characters were just so fucking ugh - though they were each driven by wildly unique motivations, they were all just sucky, boring, mostly self absorbed people. Their behavors towards one another were frustrating but not in any sort of redeeming or ha-ha-i-get-it kind of way.
I dunno. I'm just going to shrug this one off and move on to the next.
TGOG is a sprawling and vast thing that dives deeply into dysfunctional family dynamics, which is sometimes totally my thing, but all of the characters were just so fucking ugh - though they were each driven by wildly unique motivations, they were all just sucky, boring, mostly self absorbed people. Their behavors towards one another were frustrating but not in any sort of redeeming or ha-ha-i-get-it kind of way.
I dunno. I'm just going to shrug this one off and move on to the next.
December 25, 2020
The commanding title opens to reveal an epic family drama/adventure story. Hooks you in steadily, veers off-balance, it’s edgy, but the rewards are many and you’ll experience an influx of emotions. I liked not knowing “where this is going,” but arrived at the finale feeling gratified. Veselka digs deep into the psyche of the human condition. Along the way, you will learn the shipwright’s way of life and receive a humbling, visceral education on the workings and working on a skiff, vessel, boat, while Livy labors toward her dream of fishing in Alaska—to pursue her desired occupation.
Half-sisters Livy and Cheyenne, born on the same day, run separately and headlong into transformational crises. Essex, their younger brother, was brought home by Cheyenne like a stray pup as an adolescent and raised by their mother, Kirsten. The characters in this book are so full that they pop on every page. Moreover, the story is complex with an occasional exotic choice of settings, and prose that is often rugged and poetic, mixed with some myths and the ghosts of the dead, such as Sir Walter Raleigh.
“Standing at the beachhead—not all that far from the Roanoke River, or even from Hatteras Island, a place of ghosts—looking east, the ghost of Sir Walter Raleigh is caught in a loop of time. Every night, he flees his lost colony and sails for El Dorado.”
The author is a brawny language artist and pulls off genuine sentiment, too. The siblings care deeply for one another and for Kirsten, and for each of their flaws or blind spots is a flair for the heroic, too— even when in survival mode. All are striving for intimacy and personal agency, and the struggles to achieve that shape a brilliant and seductive story. “Maybe the hardest thing to see straight is love. It’s not the view through the window but the frame around it, and the glass is gone.”
Unlike the more opaque sisters, Essex is open, generous, transparent, and sporadically heartsick. His journey leads to an unlikely bridge for his spirit and a channel for his courage. He takes a shot at a 180 and the narrative heightens. Move over Mr. Darcy—you’ve got nothing on Essex. Compared to him, you’re just dour and clinically depressed.
In the pending of action, Veselka’s narrative pauses periodically to observe on the ground; seaward, or she augments spectral images with the history of those that wandered the Earth.“…in 1890, a Paiute man with messianic visions manifested a dance. …the dance united the spirits of the indigenous dead with those of the living. It infused the People with the powerful magic necessary to halt colonial expansion. …The Ghost Dance. It spread across the country. In a rage of eerie faith, it scorched the battlefield at Wounded Knee with ghostly fire.”
Literature lovers, this is a powerful story of love, family, intimacy, trauma, assault, siblings, children, and making your own family. It’s the story of the ghosts who haunt us, the dawn that awaits us, the land and sea beneath our feet, and the North Star.
Half-sisters Livy and Cheyenne, born on the same day, run separately and headlong into transformational crises. Essex, their younger brother, was brought home by Cheyenne like a stray pup as an adolescent and raised by their mother, Kirsten. The characters in this book are so full that they pop on every page. Moreover, the story is complex with an occasional exotic choice of settings, and prose that is often rugged and poetic, mixed with some myths and the ghosts of the dead, such as Sir Walter Raleigh.
“Standing at the beachhead—not all that far from the Roanoke River, or even from Hatteras Island, a place of ghosts—looking east, the ghost of Sir Walter Raleigh is caught in a loop of time. Every night, he flees his lost colony and sails for El Dorado.”
The author is a brawny language artist and pulls off genuine sentiment, too. The siblings care deeply for one another and for Kirsten, and for each of their flaws or blind spots is a flair for the heroic, too— even when in survival mode. All are striving for intimacy and personal agency, and the struggles to achieve that shape a brilliant and seductive story. “Maybe the hardest thing to see straight is love. It’s not the view through the window but the frame around it, and the glass is gone.”
Unlike the more opaque sisters, Essex is open, generous, transparent, and sporadically heartsick. His journey leads to an unlikely bridge for his spirit and a channel for his courage. He takes a shot at a 180 and the narrative heightens. Move over Mr. Darcy—you’ve got nothing on Essex. Compared to him, you’re just dour and clinically depressed.
In the pending of action, Veselka’s narrative pauses periodically to observe on the ground; seaward, or she augments spectral images with the history of those that wandered the Earth.“…in 1890, a Paiute man with messianic visions manifested a dance. …the dance united the spirits of the indigenous dead with those of the living. It infused the People with the powerful magic necessary to halt colonial expansion. …The Ghost Dance. It spread across the country. In a rage of eerie faith, it scorched the battlefield at Wounded Knee with ghostly fire.”
Literature lovers, this is a powerful story of love, family, intimacy, trauma, assault, siblings, children, and making your own family. It’s the story of the ghosts who haunt us, the dawn that awaits us, the land and sea beneath our feet, and the North Star.
May 20, 2020
I don't know why I was gifted this novel by Netgalley - and it truly felt like a gift; I didn't have to request it - but I'm so very grateful I did. Seattle drew me in, sisters intrigued me, and one of them being gay made it a must-read.
This is an epic book, both in length and scale. Nature spills out of the pages. A tornado, a storm at sea, dangerously low temperatures, the scalding sun, and amid all of it are four characters, a family trying their best and failing, being failed, and trying to find the next right path. The characters all have their moments of being unlikeable, but by the end I was desperate for them all to triumph, even if a little.
This book is immense by many definitions, not the least of which being the space it will take up in your mind when it's finished. It's big, it's beautiful, and I'm grateful I had a chance to read it early. I'm definitely buying an official copy as soon as it's available.
This is an epic book, both in length and scale. Nature spills out of the pages. A tornado, a storm at sea, dangerously low temperatures, the scalding sun, and amid all of it are four characters, a family trying their best and failing, being failed, and trying to find the next right path. The characters all have their moments of being unlikeable, but by the end I was desperate for them all to triumph, even if a little.
This book is immense by many definitions, not the least of which being the space it will take up in your mind when it's finished. It's big, it's beautiful, and I'm grateful I had a chance to read it early. I'm definitely buying an official copy as soon as it's available.
dnf
September 10, 2020DNF 70%
Usually I don't give up on books after passing the halfway mark but The Great Offshore Grounds is a meandering novel I have no interest completing. The first few chapters were intriguing but the more I read the more I disliked the author's writing, the characters, and the aimless plot (there are pages describing landscapes and or a rifle that add nothing to the actual story). One of the main characters is an asshole whose behaviour is repeatedly condoned because she's broke.
Usually I don't give up on books after passing the halfway mark but The Great Offshore Grounds is a meandering novel I have no interest completing. The first few chapters were intriguing but the more I read the more I disliked the author's writing, the characters, and the aimless plot (there are pages describing landscapes and or a rifle that add nothing to the actual story). One of the main characters is an asshole whose behaviour is repeatedly condoned because she's broke.
September 29, 2020
This is another of the 10 books on the 2020 National Book Award Fiction long list. I loved it. How does this book, published on August 25, have 114 ratings, while The Vanishing Half (another book on the longlist published on June 2) have 104,781?
I'm going to start with the comment on the back cover from Nathan Hill: Vanessa Veselka is an expert portraitist of the forgotten and left behind, people struggling to make ends meet, broke and underemployed, people of deep humanity and shallow finances trying to find their place in dysfunctional America. The Great Offshore Grounds is an unforgettable journey through a country full of malice and greed and beauty and grace. A brilliant and fearless book. That's certainly this book, but it is more, much more.
On the author's website (https://vanessaveselka.com/) there is a link to the Zoom book reading and discussion set up by Elliot Bay bookstore in Seattle on the evening of the book's release. It is worth a listen for the discussion of the "slippage out of the mythology of the American Dream." The main characters are Livy and Cheyenne (who are sisters or step sisters or twins), with mother Kirsten and brother/step brother/adopted brother Essex also major players in this drama. As the author explains in the Zoom event, "at the heart of every decision" these characters make is the question "how do I get by?" E.g., Kirsten holds off going to the doctor until she has been employed as a security guard in a parking lot long enough to qualify for health insurance (with a $10,000 deductible that she will never pay). In fact, she only took the job in order to get the health insurance because she knew something was really wrong (and it was). Essex joins the Marines and is amazed that it now costs him nothing to get his teeth fixed.
But there's so much more. There are a couple of road trips across the US -- from the Seattle to Boston to upper NY state and from Seattle to North Carolina, via Texas -- which provide dramatic landscapes and one dynamic tornado. Cheyenne encounters a man, an immigrant from Czechoslovakia (who Cheyenne immediately reminds does not exist) building a castle in the middle of no where because it is so much more fulfilling that the work he does. Livy crews on fishing boats and climbs the masts of a tall ship. There is history and two supernatural beings -- Walter Raleigh and John A. Lejeune who are often found with Livy and Essex, respectively. In common with The Vanishing Half, in addition to (maybe) twins, is the search for identity and place and what is family.
This is a sprawling novel. While it is 430 pages, it doesn't feel long. It reminds me of two other books, one nonfiction and one also sprawling and fearless --
Just Kids by Patti Smith and The Flame Throwers by Rachel Kushner.
I know that this review is on the nonsensical side but read this book. It's a good fictional companion to the non-fiction Deaths of Despair and the Future of Capitalism.
I'm going to start with the comment on the back cover from Nathan Hill: Vanessa Veselka is an expert portraitist of the forgotten and left behind, people struggling to make ends meet, broke and underemployed, people of deep humanity and shallow finances trying to find their place in dysfunctional America. The Great Offshore Grounds is an unforgettable journey through a country full of malice and greed and beauty and grace. A brilliant and fearless book. That's certainly this book, but it is more, much more.
On the author's website (https://vanessaveselka.com/) there is a link to the Zoom book reading and discussion set up by Elliot Bay bookstore in Seattle on the evening of the book's release. It is worth a listen for the discussion of the "slippage out of the mythology of the American Dream." The main characters are Livy and Cheyenne (who are sisters or step sisters or twins), with mother Kirsten and brother/step brother/adopted brother Essex also major players in this drama. As the author explains in the Zoom event, "at the heart of every decision" these characters make is the question "how do I get by?" E.g., Kirsten holds off going to the doctor until she has been employed as a security guard in a parking lot long enough to qualify for health insurance (with a $10,000 deductible that she will never pay). In fact, she only took the job in order to get the health insurance because she knew something was really wrong (and it was). Essex joins the Marines and is amazed that it now costs him nothing to get his teeth fixed.
But there's so much more. There are a couple of road trips across the US -- from the Seattle to Boston to upper NY state and from Seattle to North Carolina, via Texas -- which provide dramatic landscapes and one dynamic tornado. Cheyenne encounters a man, an immigrant from Czechoslovakia (who Cheyenne immediately reminds does not exist) building a castle in the middle of no where because it is so much more fulfilling that the work he does. Livy crews on fishing boats and climbs the masts of a tall ship. There is history and two supernatural beings -- Walter Raleigh and John A. Lejeune who are often found with Livy and Essex, respectively. In common with The Vanishing Half, in addition to (maybe) twins, is the search for identity and place and what is family.
This is a sprawling novel. While it is 430 pages, it doesn't feel long. It reminds me of two other books, one nonfiction and one also sprawling and fearless --
Just Kids by Patti Smith and The Flame Throwers by Rachel Kushner.
I know that this review is on the nonsensical side but read this book. It's a good fictional companion to the non-fiction Deaths of Despair and the Future of Capitalism.
March 5, 2021
I'm still waiting to find out what the point of this book was. Even reading the last page, I felt like the story hadn't even started yet. And seriously, there's a limit to how much sailing terminology belongs in any novel. Why????
January 11, 2021
Okay I’m ready to write my review. My fans are absolutely foaming at the mouth in anticipation.
This is the best fiction I’ve read in years!!! The story is so compelling. I literally could not put the book down for a second. I brought it with me into the b-room (bathroom). This is the only book I’ve read that is blatantly anti capitalist and doesn’t make me want to sh**t my brains out. It is clear that the writer actually understands poverty and therefore so do the characters. It doesn’t feel like manufactured propaganda written by some 24 year old who decided they don’t want mommy and daddy’s money anymore. Huge!!!! Also everyone saying it was too woo woo needs to get a grip. Okay xoxo.
This is the best fiction I’ve read in years!!! The story is so compelling. I literally could not put the book down for a second. I brought it with me into the b-room (bathroom). This is the only book I’ve read that is blatantly anti capitalist and doesn’t make me want to sh**t my brains out. It is clear that the writer actually understands poverty and therefore so do the characters. It doesn’t feel like manufactured propaganda written by some 24 year old who decided they don’t want mommy and daddy’s money anymore. Huge!!!! Also everyone saying it was too woo woo needs to get a grip. Okay xoxo.
September 10, 2021
Picture me like Uma Thurman in Pulp Fiction, "I said goddamn, goddamn, goddamn." I want to write like this. I didn't want it to end.
September 20, 2020
I wasn’t going to write anything on here, since I don’t use goodreads much anymore—but since I just noticed that there are hardly any reviews, I figured better to say something in case it encouraged more people to pick this up.
I loved this book. It’s so beautiful and I’m sure many blurbs will refer to it as a “sweeping epic” because it is. It fits in so much—similar to how The Goldfinch or A Little Life in how much they fit in and also just how these characters have so many obstacles to overcome. I loved the writing. I loved the characters. It’s a slow burn and I’m sure there are small things I didn’t enjoy, but overall it’s one of my favorite reads of this year and I highly recommend.
I loved this book. It’s so beautiful and I’m sure many blurbs will refer to it as a “sweeping epic” because it is. It fits in so much—similar to how The Goldfinch or A Little Life in how much they fit in and also just how these characters have so many obstacles to overcome. I loved the writing. I loved the characters. It’s a slow burn and I’m sure there are small things I didn’t enjoy, but overall it’s one of my favorite reads of this year and I highly recommend.
January 24, 2021
Wow, this book was good. I was stunned by the writing again and again—beautiful sentences, perspectives elevated to truths, and history told with insightful clarity. Roxane Gay’s review made me want to read this and so glad she did!
October 24, 2021
This novel felt monumental to me. It takes a very human, metaphysical problem that most of us share and subtly suffuses it with historical parallels and contexts that connect the problem to humanity at large. It reminds us that a tale of everypersons is also a tale of heroes. It even reads at times like a modern legend.
Essentially the book portrays humans struggling toward freedom and authenticity and completeness while being pressured by their circumstances to accept the opposite. The novel is particularly concerned with the tension we all face between our history and our destiny, or, in other words, how our past can hinder our full florescence. In the background is how culture frames this struggle for us, which is also a hindrance; and the brutal indifference of the fate that put us here, which can make the journey so fucking wrenching. Veselka’s examinations work at both the personal and societal scale. They add up to what she calls at one point, ‘the narrative of becoming.’
This is an ensemble novel that follows four closely-related plot lines. The protagonists struggle to make a place for themselves in the 21st Century, without sacrificing themselves to it. Often Veselka finds poetic harmonies as she moves from one character to another, subtly reconfiguring images or settings from one character’s chapter into a following chapter that features a different character. This was always intriguing and several times quite stirring. There are also surprising doses of magic realism, some delightfully bold.
Essentially the book portrays humans struggling toward freedom and authenticity and completeness while being pressured by their circumstances to accept the opposite. The novel is particularly concerned with the tension we all face between our history and our destiny, or, in other words, how our past can hinder our full florescence. In the background is how culture frames this struggle for us, which is also a hindrance; and the brutal indifference of the fate that put us here, which can make the journey so fucking wrenching. Veselka’s examinations work at both the personal and societal scale. They add up to what she calls at one point, ‘the narrative of becoming.’
This is an ensemble novel that follows four closely-related plot lines. The protagonists struggle to make a place for themselves in the 21st Century, without sacrificing themselves to it. Often Veselka finds poetic harmonies as she moves from one character to another, subtly reconfiguring images or settings from one character’s chapter into a following chapter that features a different character. This was always intriguing and several times quite stirring. There are also surprising doses of magic realism, some delightfully bold.
January 18, 2021
I will miss Cheyenne and Livy and Essex and Kirsten so much. An epic odyssey of two sisters and their cross-country journeys to figure out who they are. So happy that this was long listed for the 2020 national book award - feels like an instant classic of contemporary fiction
March 30, 2022
oh, wow, holy shit. exclamatory and also, kind of, "stuff that is holy".
October 5, 2020
From the NBA long list, a big, messy novel whose strength is its depiction of modern-day, New Agey American poverty. 3.5 stars rounding up.
June 21, 2020
For some books, the blurb is so spot on, it's hard to craft a review that does anywhere near as good a job. "Vanessa Veselka spins a tale with boundless verve, linguistic vitality, and undeniable tenderness" (from the publisher). And yes, that is it! That is this book.
This was clearly a work of literary fiction. There was beautiful prose, an unconventional family unit, and lingering questions at the end of the story.
Reflecting upon this novel, it struck me as a series of misfortunes; self-inflicted, natural and societal; overcome by sheer will or dealt with in a way that may be seen as the lesser of two evils. The characters are confronted with poverty, tornados, theft, limited health care, rape, storms and any number of other things. Through persistence, the kindness of strangers and sheer doggedness, the characters in this book manage to make it to the other side.
One of the draws for me to this book was the idea of casting "new light on the mythologies--national, individual, and collective...". This story has many personal philosophies different from my own. I re-read several passages trying to better understand a group of characters who hold fast to beliefs I do not personally hold. As I read, and later reflected, I recognized some prejudices in myself that it was somewhat refreshing to confront. One of the great joys of reading! We may share a country and national history, but the way we approach everyday life can be so different.
This story will stay with me for a long time. I would not be at all surprised if I chose to read this one again (and again and again)!
I got an ARC of this book from NetGalley and my copy says it is an uncorrected proof. As a relatively new (or at least not very experienced) reviewer of ARCs, this was my first one. I am not completely sure what the final book will look like, but my copy did not have a lot of obvious errors and I was not stymied by plot holes or character issues. I do understand that some quotes/lines/parts may change between my reading and publication. The publication date on this one appears to be the end of August.
This was clearly a work of literary fiction. There was beautiful prose, an unconventional family unit, and lingering questions at the end of the story.
Reflecting upon this novel, it struck me as a series of misfortunes; self-inflicted, natural and societal; overcome by sheer will or dealt with in a way that may be seen as the lesser of two evils. The characters are confronted with poverty, tornados, theft, limited health care, rape, storms and any number of other things. Through persistence, the kindness of strangers and sheer doggedness, the characters in this book manage to make it to the other side.
One of the draws for me to this book was the idea of casting "new light on the mythologies--national, individual, and collective...". This story has many personal philosophies different from my own. I re-read several passages trying to better understand a group of characters who hold fast to beliefs I do not personally hold. As I read, and later reflected, I recognized some prejudices in myself that it was somewhat refreshing to confront. One of the great joys of reading! We may share a country and national history, but the way we approach everyday life can be so different.
This story will stay with me for a long time. I would not be at all surprised if I chose to read this one again (and again and again)!
I got an ARC of this book from NetGalley and my copy says it is an uncorrected proof. As a relatively new (or at least not very experienced) reviewer of ARCs, this was my first one. I am not completely sure what the final book will look like, but my copy did not have a lot of obvious errors and I was not stymied by plot holes or character issues. I do understand that some quotes/lines/parts may change between my reading and publication. The publication date on this one appears to be the end of August.
August 11, 2020
Veselka has given us an atmospheric, wild ride that is both exciting and devastating. Two sisters attend their estranged father's wedding, hoping for an inheritance, and unearthing a family secret instead. Each character - the two sisters, their adopted brother, the mother who raised them - goes through an odyssey of sorts. Veselka captures the desperation of poverty, the tendency to try to go it alone, and the unexpected connections to strangers that can ultimately lift us up.
February 1, 2021
Sometimes (not as often as when I was seventeen or twenty-six) I finish a book and want to walk around quietly for a few days clutching it to my chest. This is one of those books. I do not want to let it go.
November 2, 2020
ok this is a very compassionate novel with well drawn characters but it's chocked full of whimsy/pointless magical realism that became grating. also just wildly uneven and did not come together for me. more casual dropping your sex work background in your author bio though please🤘
cw: rape
cw: rape
April 8, 2021
4.5 stars. A sprawling, expansive joy of a novel, combining Melville, myth, social realism, and a dysfunctional family saga into a unique and mostly successful literary tour-de-force. The author is especially adept with her female characters, and their literal and figurative journeys are compellingly told, with both humor and pathos (the male characters, in contrast, serve mainly as plot devices--my most significant reservation about the book). The writing is both controlled and lyrical, the story is engaging and real, and the themes are universal and immediate. Once you pick it up, you won't want to put it down.
January 28, 2021
Lots I didn't quite get here. "Moby Dick" for feminists? It says quite a bit about the effects of poverty and communicates feminist's rage in a recognizable way. Vibrant conversation at book group. Lots to clarify about the motivations of all those unlikeable characters. I didn't get the ending and was impatient with the loose ends, but one of my book group friends convinced me that really, everyone had grown by the end, had finally acted in their own behalf and was going to be okay. So even though I had to be led to it I liked this read.
February 3, 2021
I wish I had liked this novel more. The plot was promising. Two half sisters, Cheyenne and Livy, decide to accept their dad's wedding invitation even though it had been years since either had seen him. One reason to go was the possibility of a nice gift from their wealthy dad, another was to have a free, nice meal as they were both on the edges of poverty. Their mom, Kirsten, also attended the wedding along with their adopted brother, Essex, who they rescued when he was eleven from homelessness on Seattle's "University Ave." We soon learn that Cheyenne and Liv had the same dad and while they were both raised by Kirsten one had a different biological mother; Their dad had been living with and having sex with both Kirsten and Ann when both became pregnant. The dad left at the news and after giving birth, Ann left for a series of monasteries and retreats leaving Kirsten to raise both daughters . Kirsten decides by free choice not to pursue child support and not work and instead raise the children using welfare, very frugal living, while she pursued alternative life choices including starting a coven. The sisters do not know which of them was Kirsten's biological daughter.
Thirty years after his daughter's birth the dad's "gift" is not money but the address of
Ann, the biological mother of one of them. The two sisters then drive from Seattle to Boston with little money to meet Ann giving promise of an exciting road trip with a detour to Cheyenne's ex-husband, an ex-husband because of Cheyenne's numerous affairs with her husband's college students.
My main problem with the book was that every character was unsympathetic. Whatever credit for generosity Cheyenne gets for rescuing 11 year old Essex is undermined by her constant using of him for money and rescues when he becomes an adult, Livy works hard but the shell she built around herself wards also walls off sympathy for her, Kirsten's lifestyle choices were also selfish in raising her children including her decision not to share Ann's location. The most sympathetic character, Essex, is generous in spirit, makes progress in escaping his abandonment by his biological family, but I found myself frustrated with his willingness to be a doormat.
The other problem is that each character's life is beset with numerous hard luck and tragedy. An antique bed that could lead to a start out of poverty is repeatedly vandalized by meth heads during a cross country trip, an Alaskan fishing job results in no income because of a boat owner's addiction, bad choices and bad luck, the next fishing job ends in an escape from rape which also leaves no money for the work for that job, another character's car is destroyed by tornado, another character gets stomach cancer that goes untreated too long, another character's friend shoots himself. And the list goes on.
I should qualify my disappointment by acknowledging that I finished reading it. I was interested enough to want to know what happened to the characters, finding out if either daughter eventually meets Ann, if Essex's enlistment in the marines works, if Livy's wall breaks down and allows her to accept that someone is in love with her. But, still....
Thirty years after his daughter's birth the dad's "gift" is not money but the address of
Ann, the biological mother of one of them. The two sisters then drive from Seattle to Boston with little money to meet Ann giving promise of an exciting road trip with a detour to Cheyenne's ex-husband, an ex-husband because of Cheyenne's numerous affairs with her husband's college students.
My main problem with the book was that every character was unsympathetic. Whatever credit for generosity Cheyenne gets for rescuing 11 year old Essex is undermined by her constant using of him for money and rescues when he becomes an adult, Livy works hard but the shell she built around herself wards also walls off sympathy for her, Kirsten's lifestyle choices were also selfish in raising her children including her decision not to share Ann's location. The most sympathetic character, Essex, is generous in spirit, makes progress in escaping his abandonment by his biological family, but I found myself frustrated with his willingness to be a doormat.
The other problem is that each character's life is beset with numerous hard luck and tragedy. An antique bed that could lead to a start out of poverty is repeatedly vandalized by meth heads during a cross country trip, an Alaskan fishing job results in no income because of a boat owner's addiction, bad choices and bad luck, the next fishing job ends in an escape from rape which also leaves no money for the work for that job, another character's car is destroyed by tornado, another character gets stomach cancer that goes untreated too long, another character's friend shoots himself. And the list goes on.
I should qualify my disappointment by acknowledging that I finished reading it. I was interested enough to want to know what happened to the characters, finding out if either daughter eventually meets Ann, if Essex's enlistment in the marines works, if Livy's wall breaks down and allows her to accept that someone is in love with her. But, still....
January 24, 2021
Lots of things happened and only occasionally were they profound
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