Rating: 
Summary: Moses and Jesus
Review: I don't mind flights of fancy as long as they are launched in the known universe. The characters were never true to themselves and the plot wandered as if the author wasn't sure of the direction or outcome of this book. But most of all the Renaissance 9 year old Swede got on my nerves. I can believe that there are child prodigies out there that can recite and retain knowledge beyond their years, but emotionally they will still throw tantrums in the toy section when they don't get their way. This baby Moses was a terribly conceived character and then there was the wizard child that performed Jesus-like miracles and the whole thing went right down hill from there. I gave it an extra star for its originality and high concept, but that's as generous as I could be.
Rating: 
Summary: One edit away from a masterpiece
Review: A poetically told tale that was actually much better than it was written. The dialogue is smooth and flowing, but the character development was rocky and many of the central characters were never brought to resolution. Too much instrospection for the children and not enough emotionalism. However, the narrative passages were exquisite. It seems to be a novel where the author should have taken one more crack to work out the bugs, so that the mechanics of the book worked. In spite of this, I would still recommend it---just not highly.
Rating: 
Summary: A rare gem
Review: What a truly magnificent experience it is to read a book that is as well crafted as this one. Without one falst note, Enger masterfully crafts a story about family, love, redemption and what "miracles" truly are. The reader is constantly challenged to question their values of wrong from right. This book and its chracters stay with you long after the last sentence. A noteworthy first novel from an author who hopefully will have many more to come.
Rating: 
Summary: Can I give it zero stars?
Review: This book starts out with an offensive story about hunting, a truly cruel and cowardly activity, in which the protagonist, as a child, celebrates the experience of wounding a goose which, having been lured down to seek companionship with the decoys it takes to be its bretheren, is then chased across a field - painful and terrified - until it is tackled and torturously killed. What a pleasant story. Anyone who isn't offended by this needs to have their head examined.
Rating:
Summary: Overrated!
Review: Reading this book was a painful experience. I really don't see what everybody is raving about. There was not a lot of creativity, most of the characters were weak, and it has a forgettable story. Lots of people talk about the book being about faith. It's actually closer to scifi.
Rating:
Summary: Not religious but very spiritual
Review: This was an ambitious read for me. Jeremiah Land, the father of our 11 year narrator, is a man of faith who loves God. We are told about the goodwill of people such as the Lands, Nokes, Decuellars, etc., and about true miracles from our young narrator. Having said this, I didnt come away from the story like I just read a religious book but rather I was left with a feeling of spirituality from the characters.
Jeremiah and the family leave their home in search of the son, Davy. This was a wonderful book about a family who love each other and live through an adventure already told many times before about good guys and bad guys and the west.
Rating:
Summary: Evocative and unusual writing
Review: Sometimes even when you read reviews, talk to friends, etc. to choose what to read next, you come upon a book by accident. Such was the case with me and Peace Like a River. I stumbled upon it and what a happy stumble it was. Enger writes beautifully and with a style I am at a loss to compare to others I'm familiar with. He's not writing, he's talking to you. Well, actually Reuben, the 11 year old, is doing the talking. He'll make you think you're 11 again, with all the hopes and self-doubts that conjures up. I absolutely loved this book. I finished it around 1 a.m. last night and have already loaned it to a friend. And I do mean loaned it. I must have this book on my shelf to re-read in the coming years.
Rating:
Summary: Child's Play
Review: Romantic mysticism and cute children add up to a pretty picture, but one that won't stand up to critical scrutiny. I might be willing to suspend my disbelief with respect to the miracles and fantasy here if the characters showed believable motivations and followed credible patterns of human nature. The author presents an idealized picture of children who are too good to be true and noble adults who are willing to sacrifice all for the sake of the children. The author seems to have a serious intent to show how Reuben comes of age and is tested by hard reality, but the cute tone of the book fights against any serious message. The cop-out ending negates Reuben's growth toward adulthood. Emotion is generated through sentimentality in which the author takes advantage of the reader's sympathy for the innocent and the sick to make his point. The problem with sentimentality is that at its heart it is a cheap shot and is manipulative and false. The popularity of this novel indicates the willingness of many to believe in an artificial world with no semblance of reality because it represents what they would like to believe is true. This is a "G" rated novel, so wholesome that it won't even say the word "rape" and its most negative language is "ratfink"! All in all the book has a very childish feel. All the Pretty Horses provides a good contrast to this novel--much more realistic and adult, a coming of age story in which the main character gets a real dose of reality and is profoundly changed by the experience. Peace Like a River is mind candy, a Disneyfied vision that can't be taken seriously by lovers of serious fiction.
Rating:
Summary: Did I miss something?
Review: Why did this book seem so hokey to me and not to others? Is it because I'm not from farm country, not religious, not wholesome? If Norman Rockwell had been a novelist, he might have written this book. That being said, some of the writing is truly striking, and a character who appears toward the end of the book -- Jape something -- is unique and creepily convincing, something out of a David Lynch movie.
Rating:
Summary: Very disappointing: could not see it through
Review: At first, I was touched by the beautiful writing and the brother-sister relationship. The Western poetry is an admirable twist. But in the long run, I just could not finish this book. The pieces did not gel together for me. I didn't care enough about the characters to care how they wound up. A MUCH better book with a similar brother-sister relationship is THE BOTTOMS by Joe Landsdale. That title won an Edgar but never received the press it deserved. If you insist on trying Peace Like a River, go for it, but purchase a copy of THE BOTTOMS as well.
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