In the Distance / Hernán Díaz – 5*****

[Book Concierge]

In the Distance – Hernán Díaz
Book on CD narrated by Peter Berkrot.
5*****

In the mid-19th century a young teen sets out from Sweden with his older brother to America. Bound for New York, they get separated when changing ships, and Håkan, with no English, mistakenly takes a ship bound for San Francisco. Arriving at the height of the gold rush, and not fully understanding the breadth of the continent he must traverse, he is determined to earn his way East to reconnect with his brother Linus. Along the way he encounters a wide variety of characters – some helpful, many not – and learns to rely upon himself.

This is a Western unlike any other I’ve ever read. The “romance” of the West is nowhere to be found here. This is often a barren, dangerous place with few allies and many enemies. In places the novel takes a philosophical turn as Håkan ponders his fate and occasionally despairs of every achieving his goal. Håkan, himself, is the stuff of legend. For one thing, he continues to grow throughout the book, becoming a giant of a man; the stories of his escapades and his legend grow even bigger. The novel covers decades, taking Håkan from age fourteen to “white-haired” old age.

I loved the poetic writing though sometimes was frustrated by the lack of clear story arc. Also, occasionally Díaz writes entire passages in Swedish, with little or no translation. I suppose he wanted the reader to feel as lost as his character. A few times in the book, Díaz repeats entire passages verbatim a page or two after first introducing them. I think fans of Jose Saramago would like this book. My F2F book group had a spirited discussion, though most members did not like it.

My final verdict: Marvelous writing and a fascinating character.

Peter Berkrot narrated the audio version. I did not like his delivery, though I eventually grew used to it. I think I’ll probably re-read this as some point, and I’ll definitely rely on the text version.



LINK to my review

[Booknblues]

I fell in to the dislike side. It is great writing and a fascinating character.

I read it earlier this year in the Trim challenge. I love a western and in many ways it reminded me of Cormac McCarthy's. I think I was not quite prepared for it and hoping for something else.

(view spoiler)[ I so wanted him to find his brother that I could never quite get over his failure to make it to NY or even find a safe place for himself instead of spending years in the wilderness. (hide spoiler)]

[Joy D]

Thanks for your review! I own a copy so I'll be reading it at some point.