The Meadow

Rating:
Summary: Shangri-La
Review: James Galvin's lush "Meadow" is as real as Shagri-La, and like Shangri-La it both gives and [takes] the life from those who live there. A timeless book about our disappearing rural west and those of us try to hang on to our land and lives against overwhelming odds. Thanks John Galvin.

Rating:
Summary: Total Recall
Review: Patricia Hampl says that "the function of memory...is intensely personal and surprisingly political. ...if we refuse to do the work of creating this personal version of the past, someone else will do it for us." James Galvin has created his own personal version of the history of an unspoiled place on the Colorado-Wyoming border, and the people who lost and remained there. His book is delightful in its complexity; it's not written in temporal order but in the order of memory. Galvin writes, "...memory becomes a museum with a long shelf on which we arrange a bric-a-brac of deeds, each to his own liking." Here, Galvin gives us a clue into the apparently random arrangement of his one hundred chapters. It has the structure of recall, even "total recall."

The beauty of The Meadow's structure is the way Galvin makes it work. We see in his mind what's important: the character of the land first, and then the people who move through it "like the weather." Concerns about chronology and times and dates slip away as we become engrossed in the more eternal things, like memory.

Rating:
Summary: Total Recall
Review: Patricia Hampl says that "the function of memory...is intensely personal and surprisingly political. ...if we refuse to do the work of creating this personal version of the past, someone else will do it for us." James Galvin has created his own personal version of the history of an unspoiled place on the Colorado-Wyoming border, and the people who lost and remained there. His book is delightful in its complexity; it's not written in temporal order but in the order of memory. Galvin writes, "...memory becomes a museum with a long shelf on which we arrange a bric-a-brac of deeds, each to his own liking." Here, Galvin gives us a clue into the apparently random arrangement of his one hundred chapters. It has the structure of recall, even "total recall."

The beauty of The Meadow's structure is the way Galvin makes it work. We see in his mind what's important: the character of the land first, and then the people who move through it "like the weather." Concerns about chronology and times and dates slip away as we become engrossed in the more eternal things, like memory.

Rating:
Summary: A Poignant Literary History of the American West

Review: The culture of the American West sets the stage for this remarkable novel dealing with the erosion of traditional culture. Galvin's setting - a meadow within Colorado shared by friends struggling to hold on to a dying American way of life as development and tourism start to evade this most private place. It's a history lesson of the way the west was for several families, and a warning of what is to come.
I enjoyed reading the history of this meadow, and reflected upon other natural areas I once knew as a kid that were affected in much the same way.

Rating:
Summary: Amazing-- one of my favorite books.
Review: This book beautifully weaves writing about the meadow between Wyoming and Colorado with the compelling stories of the men who live and die there. If you do not feel some connection to at least one of the characters in the book by the end, you probably have no emotion, as bold as that is to say. This book evoked so many emotions in me and I wish I could give it more than 5 stars!!!

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful
Review: This book is a must read. Galvin's beautiful, simple language paints a vivid picture. This book reminds us of the simple pleasures of life, the things that pass us by everyday as we go about our lives. Take a moment to read this book and the world will be fresh to you.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Book about MY FAMILY
Review: This book is about my family. The man Appleton is my great-grandfather, so of course, I would enjoy the book. The stories, while being factual have some errors in names and times. I have pictures to support some of the stories, like the deer, the family graveyard, pictures of App and Joey and Myra, Pete being my grandfather. When I first started doing geneology, this is the book that got me interested and going. It showed me alot of App's personality which I didn't know because he died before I was born. And that is priceless! I would like to talk to the Author, if he reviews this list once in a while please contact me. Sue [e-mail]

Rating:
Summary: Poetical writing but slow-moving narrative
Review: This book is about several families who have pursued life on a barren meadow on the Wyoming/Colorado border. It provides an intriguing look into Western character, especially of one man, Lyle, and the difficulty of life in this area. Yet the overly poetical writing moves slowly. Jumps back and forth through time and among characters make it hard to keep track of who is who. It seems the author has lived in the area since childhood, but he largely leaves himself and his opinions out of the story. The result is a dreamlike picture of a place, but not a well-told story.

Rating:
Summary: Poetical writing but slow-moving narrative
Review: This book is about several families who have pursued life on a barren meadow on the Wyoming/Colorado border. It provides an intriguing look into Western character, especially of one man, Lyle, and the difficulty of life in this area. Yet the overly poetical writing moves slowly. Jumps back and forth through time and among characters make it hard to keep track of who is who. It seems the author has lived in the area since childhood, but he largely leaves himself and his opinions out of the story. The result is a dreamlike picture of a place, but not a well-told story.

Rating:
Summary: I've only driven through land like this.
Review: This book isn't about a Meadow. It is about the people who live in environments that demand absolute attention and respect. It is about people who have a love for the land upon which they live. More than anything, it is quite simply, about people.

This book is written with a nonlinear narrative that jumps from generation to generation. The people who lived on and around The Meadow are shown in a series of short anecdotes. Each piece building upon the last, or preparing for one that'll come a few pages into the future. The book is not traditional in its struture, but one could argue that life on such land, or anywhere for that matter, has little concern for what we humans consider the "right" and "natural" way of things. This book goes where the weather takes you, like the winds on top of that distant meadow.

That said, the writing is powerful and a delight. What this book challenges the reader with in terms of structure, it gives back tenfold in pure prose beauty. James Galvin knows how to put words together such that the sentences themselves and the way they are written offer insight to an otherwise distant place. He brings it all home to us in this book, and as a man who has lived the last ten years of his life in various cities on the East and West Coast, I appreciate the very generous reminder that there are simpler, and yet no less difficult, ways to live out there. Satisfaction comes from many points and from the simplest of things. The Meadow makes this very clear.

Great Work.