Amazon.com Review
Amazon Significant Seven, April 2008: A gritty western couched in the easy storytelling style of a folk ballad (think
3:10 to Yuma as sung by the Kingston Trio), Leif Enger's highly anticipated second novel (his first was
Peace Like a River)
tells the story of outlaw Glendon Hale's quest to right his past, as
seen through the eyes of his unlikely companion Monte Becket.
So Brave, Young, and Handsome
begins with Becket, a struggling novelist bewildered by the success of
his first book, who has pledged to his wife, son, and publisher to
"write one thousand words a day until another book is finished." Four
years and six unfinished novels later, Becket sits on the porch of his
Minnesota farmhouse about to give up on number seven, when he spies a
man standing up in his boat "rowing upstream through the ropy mists of
the Cannon River." Eager to set aside his waning tale about handsome
ranch hand Dan Roscoe, Becket calls out to the mysterious white-haired
boatman and his life changes forever. At turns merry and wistful,
romantic and tragic,
So Brave, Young, and Handsome is as
absorbing as a campfire tale, full of winking outlaws and relentless
villains--the sort of story to keep you on the edge of your seat with
hope in your heart.
--Daphne Durham
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
From Publishers Weekly
Enger's second novel
is a marvelous tale of an unsuccessful writer and an elderly train
robber on a cross-country journey to confront past demons. Dan Woren's
narration is steadfast and resolute throughout, offering two unique
characters each with his own colorful view of the ever-encroaching
modern world. While there is little in the way of varying dialects and
tones at work, Woren offers believable and realistic protagonists that
immediately capture the listener's imagination and holds it until the
end.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
--This text refers to the
Audio CD
edition.
Review
"
So Brave, Young, and Handsome
is a sharp and brainy redemption tale, with all the twists and turns
and thrills of a dime-store western. . . . [Enger's] laid claim to a
musical, sometimes magical and deeply satisfying kind of storytelling."
--
Veronique de Turenne, Los Angeles Times
"
So Brave, Young, and Handsome
is an almost perfect novel, lively and engrossing, full of surprises,
funny, touching, and a great read. . . . [This novel] will appeal to
fans of Larry McMurty's Western epics, but also to those who enjoy the
magical realism of Isabel Allende and Alice Hoffman. The
straightforward narrative, recounted in a single voice, keeps us
turning the pages, faster and faster, and by the time the story comes
full circle, Enger will have plenty of new fans hoping he gets to work
soon on his next book." --
Gail Pennington, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
"A
superbly written, utterly compelling story of self-discovery and
redemption disguised as a cracking good adventure tale . . . Enger has
created a work of great humanity and huge heart, a riveting piece of
fiction that while highly accessible is never shallow. This story of an
ordinary man's discovery of who he is and his place in the world is
exciting, admirable and ultimately very affecting. . ..After reading
the final page, don't be surprised if you find yourself shaking your
head and murmuring, `Wow. What a good book.'" --
Peter Moore, Minneapolis Star Tribune
"With its brisk, short chapters and heady, nostalgic air, Enger's delightful follow-up to
Peace Like a River
is a big-hearted western yarn, full of blossoming and reformed outlaws,
wide prairies and aromatic orange groves, perilous chases and
abductions, trouble and redemption. It's an old-fashioned road trip you
can't afford to miss. . . . Enger's tale is lively and generous of
spirit, its stately prose steeped in warm, turn-of-the-century charm,
and Monte's discovery of his loyalty and limits is engaging. At a time
when good westerns are hard to find,
So Brave, Young, and Handsome deserves to become a classic." --
Connie Ogle, Miami Herald
"[Leif
Enger is] a formidably gifted writer, one whose fictions are steeped in
the American grain. . . . [He] is--like Ron Hansen--a child-friendly,
contemporary American heartland novelist, a writer unafraid to concoct
and couch his stories in such terms as faith, miracle, sin and grace,
repentance and redemption, atonement and absolution. . . . Enger is a
masterful storyteller . . . possessed of a seemingly effortless
facility for the stiletto-sharp drawing of wholly believable characters
[and] a pitch-perfect ear for the cadences and syntax of Midwest and
Great Plains vernacular. His Amishly carpentered prose smacks of plow
work, prairie, flapjacks and cider, butter churns, denim and calico. .
. . At times reminiscent of the sinew and gristle in the craggier work
of Annie Proulx, and at other times aspiring to a Jean Shepherdesque
folk poetry . . .
So Brave, Young, and Handsome is affable and
human as all get out, homespun and sophisticated at once, wise and
knowing about the ubiquity of the human condition and the vagaries of
the human heart." --
Bruce Olds, the Chicago Tribune
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
Review
“Deserves to become a classic.”—The Miami Herald
“An almost perfect novel . . . A great read.”—St. Louis Post-Dispatch
“A
sharp and brainy redemption tale . . . [Enger’s] laid claim to a
musical, sometimes magical, and deeply satisfying kind of
storytelling.”—Los Angeles Times
“An adventure of the heart and mind.”—Washington Post Book World
“Enger
is a formidably gifted writer. . . . At times reminiscent of the sinew
and gristle in the craggier work of Annie Proulx, and at other times
aspiring to a Jean Shepherdesque folk poetry.”—Chicago Tribune
“A fine novel . . . worthy of comparison with Shane and Monte Walsh and True Grit.”—Dallas Morning News
“Superbly written, utterly compelling . . . A cracking good adventure tale.”—Star Tribune (Minneapolis)
