Some Luck

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jane Smiley's newest novel, a sublime paean to the American Midwest and its people, is enhanced by the clarity and subtle "gee-whiz" quality of Lorelei King's narration. The story is a panoramic sweep of 30 years in an Iowa farm family. From the end of 1918 to the early 1950s, Rosanna and Walter Langdon and their children experience joys, sorrows, and challenges that define them--and our growing nation. King ably exploits Smiley's narrative, which tells the story from differing viewpoints, to explore character through varying pace and speaking styles. She also changes her tone and roughens some character voices to increase our sense of the passing of time and a way of life. Well done. A.C.S. © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine

Starred review from July 7, 2014
In the first volume of a planned trilogy, Smiley returns to the Iowa of her Pulitzer Prize–winning A Thousand Acres, but in a very different vein. The warring sisters and abusive father of that book have given way to the Langdons, a loving family whose members, like most people, are exceptional only in their human particularities. The story covers the 1920s through the early ’50s, years during which the family farm survives the Depression and drought, and the five Langdon children grow up and have to decide whether to stay or leave. Smiley is particularly good at depicting the world from the viewpoint of young children—all five of the Langdons are distinct individuals from their earliest days. The standout is oldest son Frank, born stubborn and with an eye for opportunity, but as Smiley shifts her attention from one character to another, they all come to feel like real and relatable people. The saga of an Iowa farm family might not seem like an exciting premise, but Smiley makes it just that, conjuring a world—time, place, people—and an engaging story that makes readers eager to know what happens next. Smiley plans to extend the tale of the Langdon family well into the 21st century; she’s off to a very strong start.