Buckeye: A Read with Jenna Pick

A Novel

De: Patrick Ryan

Narrado por: Michael Crouch

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • READ WITH JENNA BOOK CLUB PICK AS FEATURED ON TODAY • “A glorious sweep of a novel” (Ann Patchett) that weaves the intimate lives of two midwestern families across generations, from World War II to the late twentieth century.

“Mesmerizing.”—People
“Captivating.”—The New York Times Book Review
“A once-in-a-decade novel . . . I fell in love with these characters.”—Jenna Bush Hager

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post, NPR, People, Minnesota Star Tribune, New York Post, Chicago Public Library

LONGLISTED FOR THE JOYCE CAROL OATES PRIZE

One town. Two families. A secret that changes everything.

In Bonhomie, Ohio, a stolen moment of passion, sparked in the exuberant aftermath of the Allied victory in Europe, binds Cal Jenkins, a man wounded not in war but by his inability to serve in it, to Margaret Salt, a woman trying to obscure her past. Cal’s wife, Becky, has a spiritual gift: She is a seer who can conjure the dead, helping families connect with those they’ve lost. Margaret’s husband, Felix, is serving on a Navy cargo ship, out of harm’s way—until a telegram suggests that the unthinkable might have happened.

Later, as the country reconstructs in the postwar boom, a secret grows in Bonhomie—but nothing stays buried forever in a small town. Against the backdrop of some of the most transformative decades in modern America, the consequences of that long-ago encounter ripple through the next generation of both families, compelling them to reexamine who they thought they were and what the future might hold.

Sweeping yet intimate, rich with piercing observation and the warmth that comes from profound understanding of the human spirit, Buckeye captures the universal longing for love and for goodness.

characters were interesting

This was an interesting story of the life of two families that become intimately intertwined. the story explicitly values love and forgiveness, but I would add tenacity and endurance to those family values.

Life’s journey

A realistic map of life. although some of what you read is hard to hear because it’s so close to life you walk away from reading this book with a Claira understanding of how important love and forgiveness is.

What you will learn about family, the 60s and redemption.

I loved the whole book. Probably a re read for me. Hope to read more from this author.

A book not to be missed

I did not want Buckeye to end because the very human, expertly written characters became a family I deeply cared for as they navigated the treacherous time period between World War II and Vietnam. Michael Crouch beautifully gave life to each voice so that I better understood each character. I could feel the depth of their joy, sadness and regret. Buckeye will not be forgotten.

The characters

The story has you thinking that you know these people. The mistakes they make, the lies. The heartbreak. The narrator was perfect. I would highly recommend it to anyone.