Ordinary Grace in Exceptional Books

May 29, 2024 Sarah rated it it was amazing

What a beautifully written, compelling novel. I like the way the author drops hints about what's coming in this gentle coming-of-age story that is somewhat of a mystery, although not really a thriller. Awful grace; ordinary grace. It's what helps us go on. ...more

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Mar 10, 2021 Cathy rated it really liked it

Shelves: audiobook, death, coming-of-age, family

"All that dying that summer began with the death of a child, a boy with golden hair and thick glasses, killed on the railroad tracks outside New Breman, Minnesota...It was a summer in which death, in visitation, assumed many forms. Accident. Nature. Suicide. Murder.”

So begins Ordinary Grace, told by Frank, a 13 year old boy, son of a preacher and brother to Ariel, a brilliant musician on her way to Juilliard in the fall and a younger brother, Jake. Jake has a terrible stutter and has no friends "All that dying that summer began with the death of a child, a boy with golden hair and thick glasses, killed on the railroad tracks outside New Breman, Minnesota...It was a summer in which death, in visitation, assumed many forms. Accident. Nature. Suicide. Murder.”

So begins Ordinary Grace, told by Frank, a 13 year old boy, son of a preacher and brother to Ariel, a brilliant musician on her way to Juilliard in the fall and a younger brother, Jake. Jake has a terrible stutter and has no friends of his own, so he always follows Frank. He is also more spiritual than his brother and struggles with his conscience. The story takes place during the summer of 1961 and Frank tells the story from the perspective of forty years. Beautifully written, it tells the story of four deaths that summer, and in particular, the death of his sister Ariel.

After Bobby Doyle's death, the first that summer, Frank decides to investigate, to see if there may have been a cause for the death. While forbidden by their parents, Frank and Jake go to the river and while sitting on the trestle they see a man next to a another man who is dead, the second to die that summer. Of course Frank believes that the man, a Native American, was the murderer and he recounts his suspicions to Gus. Gus is a war buddy of his dad, who lives in the basement of the church. Frank and his brother not only wander constantly, looking for clues, but listen in to all of their dad's conversations through a pipe from the basement of the church. After a disturbing encounter with older boy who threatens him, that boy too is added to the list of suspects. Also on the list is Karl Brandt, Ariel's boyfriend.

The family is almost broken by Ariel's death, but in a way it had not been so great before. Their mom had once been a musician as well and had not pursued a music career when she married their father, a promising law student. However following the war, he decided to become a preacher, so she led the choir at his congregations. While Ariel's death almost broke them apart, in the end they were able to find some sort of closure. While the two boys help uncover the cause of their sister's death, in my mind their snooping led to another death. As an adult, Frank acknowledges the harm he allowed to happen but I felt that he let it go too easily.

The part I loved best about the book is the way in which setting is so distinctly part of the story. It was hard to put down. ...more

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Sep 01, 2017 Ginni rated it really liked it

Read this in one sitting. Couldn't put it down. Perspective (of a strong willed young boy) appealed to me. I grew up in Minnesota during this same time period, "the good old days". Plot twists are well done. Characters and settings have "just enough" detail -- like an Impressionist painting. This is the sort of book I love and crave! ...more

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