December 11, 2024
I Cheerfully Refuse by Leif Enger
In the not too distant future, musician Rainy lives with his wife Lark in a remote town in the upper peninsula of Michigan on the shore of Lake Superior. Lark owns a bookstore in an age where people no longer read - for many people, it's a struggle to survive. Rainy and Lark rent out a room in their house to travelers, offering them a bed and meals and whatever else they may need, until they are ready to move on. When one of these travelers brings trouble with him, Rainy flees in his boat on Lake Superior, running from a mysterious man who believes that Rainy knows where to find a cache of stolen drugs.
Dystopian fiction set in the near future. Confusing at first, it was hard to know what direction the story was going. Rainy may be searching for his dead wife or he may be searching for an elusive poet. There are a number of references to Don Quixote, a dreamer on a quest. Wonderful characters, even the evil ones, and poetic language as well as poetic justice. Fans of the novels of Peter Heller will enjoy Enger's dystopian story.
Lake Superior of the Michigan coast on a calm day
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