This Tender Land
4/5 – Every so often I can get behind a story that is based around family strife. About how things fall apart but there is someone beside you to help put it all back together again. There are some historical relations in this book which I appreciated. When a book doesn't have murder or spooks, I like being able to come away from it learning something. Granted, not all the historical references made in the book are accurate, it doesn't mean that there were not similar circumstances to someone's life in that time period and I enjoy that it gives me more questions to find the answers to.
The story of brothers Odie and Albert, their Sioux friend Mose whose native name is Amdacha, and their little friend Emmy who have run away from a torturous boarding school to track down the brother's aunt in St. Louis. Murder, theft, and kidnapping are the accusations they are trying to leave up river but the Black Witch won't let it go. Police raids, near death experiences, and the people they meet along the way allow the audience to be in the canoe right alongside this ground of vagabonds during these trials. There is a way for everyone to relate to some part of this story as they read. Whether it be the fear of the unknown, the desire for a place to call home, or feeling as though you have no sense of purpose in life. You will find a character and a town that will call out to your very soul in these pages.
