This book fulfilled the "Author I've Never Read Before" but it is so much more than that. It's been a while since I've thought "this is one of the best books I've ever read". But this books rates a place on my particular "Best Ever" bookshelf. It literally makes me want to write Mr. Kesey a letter and thank him for writing this book. Sadly, Mr. Kesey is no longer with us so it's too late for that.
This is the story of the Stamper family, a prominent family in a Washington state logging town, and what happens when a labor strike pits the family against the rest of the town. But it is also a story of brotherhood, betrayal and vengeance. The narrative style is very unusual. It can vary from the inner thoughts of one character to another character to third person all in the same paragraph. At first this was a little confusing, but when I realized what was going on I thought -- OK, let's throw our inner tube into this river and hang on for the ride. And what a ride it is. Like the river that plays such a prominent role in the book, sometimes the story thunders with rage, and sometimes it is a calm meandering journey. The cast of characters ranges from Old Henry Stamper -- eccentric, maybe even a little nuts, but beloved by his family to Hank Stamper, his son and the face of the logging company his grandfather started decades ago, to Teddy the bartender, who hopes for bad weather and bad times because that's when his business is good. This book is why I read. A treasure unearthed from the vast library of possibilities. Thank you, Ken Kesey.
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