elizabethtown, long quiet drives, and friends (real ones).

no, not the movie.  in fact, surprising though it may be, i’ve never seen it!  i’m actually referring to the small town in kentucky itself, not the movie that got its name there.  last weekend, i met one of my dearest friends in the whole world in elizabethtown (it’s halfway between where we live), and it was great.  we talked about our lives, about the crazy, about the unexpected, about joy, about letdowns, about dreams and visions, about hopes and fears.  in short, we did what we always do after going nearly 2 years without seeing one another…we picked up right where we left off!

on my drive home later that night, i reflected on our conversation, and i was overwhelmed with appreciation.  at a time in my life where i feel like nearly nothing is certain and so many things are nothing if not completely up in the air, it was so nice to be reminded of the true value of friends.  real friends.  not the ones who are there when its convenient.  not the ones whose trust and time you have to earn or prove yourself worthy of.  not the ones who take more than they give.  i’m talking about those few, those rare, those irreplaceable people in my life that, even in the midst of some of the most overwhelming times of my life, get me, know me, love me, and are there for me. 

to those few, i just want to say ‘thank you’ (you know who you are).

great book.

THREE WORDS: READ THIS BOOK.

 

 

In a debut effort that I find difficult to label as anything other than an “instant modern classic,” Leif Enger has created a tale that is gripping, unique, and above all, beautifully written. 

Enger’s prose is brilliant and poetic, and his characters are quite simply some of the best I’ve ever read. I found myself loving some characters, hating others, and often finding the line between those two emotions to be fantastically and, as I came to understand Enger’s style, intentionally blurred. 

The most reasonable comparison I can offer is the timeless “To Kill A Mockingbird,” by Harper Lee. The innocence of Reuben (the narrator) immediately calls to mind the voice of Lee’s Scout, a likeness that is only strengthened by the fact that both of the accounts are retrospective. I realize that this is lofty praise, but Enger’s writing holds up to such demanding scrutiny. 

I won’t give a long plot summary here, as I’m sure there are plenty of those out there already. I will say this, though: if you enjoy poetic, well-written, and original books and have even the slightest appreciation for character development and vivid imagery and laugh-out-loud description, you simply owe it to yourself to go out and pick up a copy of “Peace Like a River.”