This Tender Land

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Although spirituality was a main theme, I did not feel like that the author was trying to preach. Rather, it added a dimension to the historical accuracy for the time period. In those desperate times, people turned to god for hope and answers. Sister Eve says to Odie that the only prayer she knows will absolutely be answered is a prayer for forgiveness. What do you think she means by this? Who are the people whom Odie needs to forgive, and for what reasons? In the summer of 1932, on the banks of Minnesota’s Gilead River, Odie O’Banion is an orphan confined to the Lincoln Indian Training School, a pitiless place where his lively nature earns him the superintendent’s wrath. Forced to flee after committing a terrible crime, he and his brother, Albert, their best friend, Mose, and a brokenhearted little girl named Emmy steal away in a canoe, heading for the mighty Mississippi and a place to call their own.

Trying to understand the nature of God is one of the many struggles for Odie during his experiences in the summer of 1932. Is Odie the only one struggling with this issue? What sense do you have concerning the way the other vagabonds feel about the nature of God? What about the people they meet on their travels? How does Odie’s relationship with God change over the course of his journey?

This Tender Land

Thus their journey begins—harsh, perilous, frightening. They are confronted along the way by a dissimilitude of good and evil. Not to give spoilers but I was surprised with the ending. I was so engrossed in the book that I didn’t really think about what would happen to Odie toward the end. The tale I’m going to tell is of a summer long ago. Of killing and kidnapping and children pursued by demons of a thousand names. There will be courage in this story and cowardice. There will be love and betrayal. And, of course, there will be hope. In the end, isn’t that what every good story is about? I definitely savored it and thought I haven’t read something such an amazing story for so long. It’s the best historical fiction I’ve read on this year.

The book takes place during the Great Depression. Discuss the characters’ interactions with Hoovervilles and the Flats. Did the residents seem hopeless to you or hopeful despite their circumstances? Discuss the differences between the Schofields and Gertie and her friends. Why do you think Odie feels such an allegiance to such people? I also enjoyed the twist that was thrown in at the end. That twist made me all fuzzy inside and left me with a light heart.That summer, several things happen that lead to Odie killing a man and the Odie, Albert, Mose and Emmy must go on the run. They plan to find their aunt who lives in St Paul and ask her to take them in but the journey is fraught with danger, hunger, and often a feeling of hopelessness that rivaled their time at the home. The characters make this story for me, that and Odie's story telling, which may or may not be always accurate, as he tells the story in his eighties.

The goal here is to get a close-to-real book experience, so choose any of the items above that remind you of your favorite parts of the book. They encountered too many merciless, mean, savage people but also they met kind, generous people who extend their helping hands which gave them enough joy, hope to survive the hand the life dealt. Later that night, they see something unexpected: "Sister Eve pulled a cigarette from a small, silver case, and the trumpet player lifted a lighter and offered her a flame. She blew a flourish of smoke . . . drew on the cigarette, then her lips formed a little O and she puffed out two perfect smoke rings . . ." During the Great Depression, four orphans escape from the Lincoln School in Minnesota, an unhappy and perilous home/institution for Native American children where they had little food, harsh punishments, and suffered abuse. This quartet of miserable children consists of rebellious, free-spirited, and harmonica-playing Odie; his responsible and conscientious older brother Albert; their best friend and Native American, Mose; and a brokenhearted little girl named Emmy. The foursome makes their escape in a canoe down the Gilead River toward the Mississippi in search of a safe place to call home and people to love them. They become found family to each other and survive encounters with all types of people. THIS TENDER LAND's lush writing had me not wanting to stop reading because I didn’t want to miss their adventures, and I didn't want the book to end.

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Richly imagined and exceptionally well plotted and written, the novel is, most of all, a compelling, often haunting story that will captivate both adult and young adult readers.” If you liked Where the Crawdads Sing, you’ll love This Tender Land ...This story is as big-hearted as they come.” — Parade Chapter 4 – Sausages with scrambled eggs and potatoes with diced onions and bread – Volz and Albert rescue Odie and Mose from the Quiet Room