I kept expecting a more in your face apocalypse story but instead got a simmering tragedy that managed to keep an uplifting tone. This may need a reread to fully grasp the poignancy of Rainy's story. It was quite an adventure despite bad turns and I do think the writing is top notch.

„Here at the beginning it must be said the End was on everyone‘s mind.“

So begins this beautifully written, haunting novel set in a not-so-distant dystopian future where it does indeed feel like the end is near. Musician Rainy and his bookseller wife Lark live on the edge of Lake Superior, enjoying a simple but comfortable life in a deteriorating world and society. When they take in a boarder, their lives inevitably turn into tragedy, and soon Rainy, grieving and hunted, sets sail across the Lake both to escape his pursuers and in hopes of finding his lost love. What follows is a mesmerizing tale of Rainy‘s odyssey across Lake Superior - its moods, set off by extremes in climate, turning the Lake into its own character. At times action-filled and nail-biting in its suspense, the novel ebbs and flows between driving the story forward and quiet, reflective moments which make it all the more beautiful.

Rainy muses: “I am always last to see the beauty I inhabit.“

Filled with the kindness of strangers, greed, the immeasurable worth of books, adventure, connection, ignorance and hatred - both the very worst and the very best humanity has to offer -, and the resilience and perseverance of the human spirit, „I Cheerfully Refuse“ is a testament to finding beauty in any circumstance and, ultimately, a poetic, thoughtful tale of hope. A literary triumph.

Thank you to NetGalley and Grove Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

„I Cheerfully Refuse“ is set to be published on April 2, 2004.

This was my first Leif Enger book. Excellently paced. Likeable characters. Definitely a book that you want to discuss.
Recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to preview this book!

Note: This review will be live on my website at 9:00 a.m. Pacific time April 4, 2024.

The most effective post-apocalyptic fiction and climate fiction (cli-fi) doesn’t feature One Big Disaster that annihilates half the population and resources of the Earth with a Galactus-like snap. These stories are more like mid-apocalypse, and so more realistic, and maybe more existentially frightening. It’s difficult to imagine Mount Hood actually erupting and spilling lava down the Columbia Gorge and taking out Portland, Oregon, where I live, but it’s a possibility. (According to the New Yorker article about this possibility, it’s not worth my worrying about how I will survive in this post-apocalyptic, post-eruption future. I will be immediately choked by smoke then smothered in hot lava.) It’s such a remote possibility, this Galactus-snap apocalypse, that it’s thrilling to read about or to watch on the big screen.

In more literary post-apocalyptic novels, the crisis—or more often crises—are ongoing to the extent that it’s pointless to wonder when things will “go back to normal.” These stories—I’m thinking of works like Joy Williams’s Harrow—are set in the slow-rolling middle of the apocalypse, where something has happened, but things are still kind of happening, so this is the way things are for now, and it may change tomorrow, and it may not, and there’s no way to know, so you might as well play bass in the local band and run a hybrid bakery/bookshop in a postliterate world.

This is what the main characters of I Cheerfully Refuse are doing in the opening chapters of the latest novel Leif Enger. The narrator, Rainy—short for Rainier, like the mountain near Seattle—is doing his best to maintain a small life in a small midwestern town in this otherwise miserable post-apocalyptic world. His partner, Lark, runs the bookshop half of the bakery. In addition to the bakery and the bass-playing, Lark and Rainy take in boarders. When a skittish young man named Kellan arrives in search of a place to stay, Rainy takes him under his wing like the little brother he never had. Kellan is one of the many workers in the United States signed on to a six-year indentured-servant-like contracts that they cannot break, and they may not leave the prisonlike confines where they are forced to live. The occasional escapees are known as “squelettes,” for the emaciated appearance of the first escapees to make it to French-speaking Canada. And who are they running from, these squelettes? The astronauts, of course. That’s what members of the ownership class are called, a nod to the off-planet ambitions of our current crop of mega-billionaires. As a squelette, Kellan is a fugitive, which puts Rainy and Lark in legal danger. But Kellan seems harmless enough, despite his paranoia and night terrors. Everyone is dealing with the mid-apocalypse era in their own way.

Anyone who is having even half a decent time of it thinks of themselves as lucky, including the narrator Rainy. Everything around them crumbles into neglect. An expressway sags into the ditches on either side after three flash floods in quick succession wiped out a section of pavement. Residents requested repairs, which were promised as soon as funds were allocated, but no repair was ever made. It’s a microcosm of what’s happened to the rest of the world in this novel: a series of never-ending disasters, large and small, that overwhelmed infrastructure and budgets and organizational capacities. As Rainy puts it: “The world was confused. It was running out of everything, especially future.”
Just when it seems that the apocalyptic conditions, both environmental and societal, are going to be the amorphous but oppressive evil against which the protagonists fight, an actual, flesh-and-blood human antagonist arrives on the scene: Werryck. He’s in pharmaceuticals, and he will absolutely destroy anything and anyone in his way of controlling supply and labor. Kellan warns Rainy about “relentless hellhound” Werryck: “When you see him standing in your kitchen, you slip out the back. Be quiet, be quick. Don’t hunt for your wallet. Don’t grab a coat. Slip out the window if you have to.”

The appearance of the menacing Werryck changes everything and sets in motion a slow-motion chase on Lake Superior with many stops for supplies that might bring to mind The Odyssey, or even The Little Prince. Safe harbors are hard to come by, but a small found family congeals around the rickety Flower, piloted by Rainy. Environmental and community devastation are evident throughout: long-dead bodies released from the lake’s depths by climate change, the extortion of a bridge lift operator, the nearly empty lakeshore towns.

And what of the title? Does it refer to a ragtag band of resistance fighters against the astronauts? Is Rainy a Bartelby-esque thorn in the side of capitalism? It’s none of these. It’s actually the title of Lark’s favorite book, written by the fictional author Molly Thorn. The book was never published, but Lark has come into possession of a rare advanced review copy, or ARC, printed before the publication was canceled. As an aside, this created yet another a surreal moment for me as a reviewer, as I was reading an ARC of a novel called I Cheerfully Refuse.

I know I said that literature that uses the slow-rolling middle of an apocalypse feels more realistic, but I Cheerfully Refuse does have a surreal dreaminess about it, even outside the occasional dream sequence or reference to an advance review copy. The twists and turns of the plot are earned; there is no deus ex machina feel. But the eerie calmness of Sol, the girl Rainy takes aboard his boat, and the pettiness of the bridge operators, and the memory of sailing to the Slates with Lark are just one step beyond grounded. Oddly, that in turn makes the setting a little more believable. If it were merely gritty realism, not only would the novel be a downer, it would be kind of unbelievable to a reader in 2024. In the past several years, we have been required to adjust to the very weird: heat domes, record-setting wildfires, a global pandemic, reality TV stars as world leaders, and phrases like “milkshake duck,” “This is fine,” and “covfefe” breaking free of social media and coming out of our actual mouths in conversation. A near-ish-future post-apocalyptic cli-fi novel that is not at least a little surreal would not be at all realistic. Which is surreal in itself.

Despite its surreality and erosion of community and climate, I Cheerfully Refuse lives up to its title in offering quiet resistance in the form of solidarity and community. Rainy eventually “remembers the future,” as he says, and the very idea of looking forward to small pleasures and contentment. This undercurrent might shift the novel toward another new subgenre, hopepunk. There are no Marvel superheroes or Katniss Everdeens here, but there are regular people making music and bread and bookshops and friendships amid the chaos.

I had high hope for I Cheerfully Refuse. It started out so promising, but then petered out in the second half.

The writing was lovely in its own way, descriptive and profound. The love story between Rainy and his wife, the dive into their life together was sweet. The idea of this dystopian future where reading and literacy are considered unimportant or even undesireable is the scariest thing a bookstagrammer could imagine. The sense of hopelessness that pervades the society, such that a suicide drug is seen as an acceptable option, elevated to almost a religious experience, was strangely enticing. All of these themes made for an exceptional read. And I rather liked that it was never specified how society ended up in this position.

Unfortunately, it just couldn't hold my interest as well when it started to focus on the little girl, Sol, and the evil corporations taking advantage of the less fortunate among the population.

I guess the book just felt more intimate in the beginning, but lost that feeling as it progressed.

Enger has set his novel in some unspecified future period, in the wake of environmental and political catastrophe—also unspecified. Rather than engage in elaborate worldbuilding, he keeps his focus on the lives and experiences of his handful of characters, giving us only as many details as we need to know about the harsh world surrounding them. There are touches of the grotesque and the darkly humorous and the tragic, but for the most part, at least until the book’s climax, they’re only touches. It’s a creative and effective choice, as it draws us nearer to those characters and strengthens our belief in their ability to handle whatever that world can throw at them. And there is a LOT to handle. But our hero has an iron will and a refusal to despair, and his adventures are captivating and moving. (Full review forthcoming on my Substack. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.)

In "I Cheerfully Refuse," Leif Enger takes readers on a journey through a unique blend of genres, seamlessly merging elements of science fiction, dystopia, and literary exploration. The novel follows Rainy, a musician, as he embarks on a perilous quest across the seas in search of his wife, only to encounter unexpected challenges when he lands.

"I Cheerfully Refuse" is a book unlike any other. Perfect for readers who enjoy genre-bending fiction and a deep dive into the power of storytelling, Enger's novel is an unforgettable read from start to finish. I’ll be highly recommending this one!

I picked up this book after reading glowing reviews and was not disappointed. Leif Enger writes beautifully and elegantly. I Cheerfully Refuse is set in a dystopian world that has seen pandemics, climate change, power plays by those with extreme wealth, and the lack of fresh food. It's a hard world, but Rainy, a musician has found love with Lark, a book seller. When Lark invites a young man to rent out their attic, Rainy suffers heartbreaking loss. He flees in his boat and the journey he goes on takes him from one dangerous situation to the next. Along the way, a young girl hides in his boat......

I had both the book and the audiobook versions of this book which made for a wonderful reading experience. I do think this book works best in the written form. I did enjoy the narrator, but the writing is so beautiful that I enjoyed reading more than listening to it. IThis book touches on the ugliness in people, the feral drive to survive, and lawlessness of a broken society. I also found this book to be emotional, hopeful, sad, thought provoking and beautifully written. It explores love, connection, hope, loss, desperation, resiliency, courage, and kindness.

Beautifully written, thought provoking, and evoking emotion.

Thank you so much for providing me with an arc of i cheerfully refuse! I enjoyed this read and I can’t wait to check out his backlog

I Cheerfully Refuse is now my new favorite saying and also a book that captivated and slightly frustrated me. We begin with a stranger’s arrival to the home of a couple. He carries with him the book “I Cheerfully Refuse”, the book the wife, Lark, has been looking for a copy of for decades. It takes about 25% for things to start happening, but something finally does in connection with this book and we realize we are in a dystopian world where evil reigns. Her husband, and our lead, Rainy, and ends up on an Odyssey. Upon his departure on a small boat we quickly realize he is in danger.

I don’t typically like adventure stories, and Rainy’s Odyssey is absolutely an adventure story, but a lot of this worked for me. The writing is absolutely stunning and Enger manages to build such tension despite a getaway vehicle that can go a max 7mph. The action is in the way he tells this story. I loved the companion he picks up along the way, a young girl named Sol and an absolutely remarkable secondary character. But here’s the thing. I was SO invested in this grief odyssey and his relationship with both Lark and Sol. But this is a story about Rainy and we don’t get the connections I was expecting, hoping for, and that I believe were necessary to fully accomplish an Odyssey. Nonetheless, this is a gorgeous book and one I think I’ll be thinking about for awhile.

Thank you to the publisher for the chance to read and review this ahead of its publication this coming Tuesday. Leif Enger’s Peace Like a River is a favorite for many, and I’ll be so eager to hear how everyone likes I Cheerfully Refuse. If you don’t read it, at least use that in a sentence.

It’s pub day for this enchanting work. I cheerfully give this dystopian novel five stars. While there was a lot of the “same” with the dystopian era - limited food, crime, etc - I loved the twist on moving this story out on the water. That’s something fresh I havent seen done before and it really made me enjoy it that much more seeing the author take something pretty standard and make it something special. Thats what sets the good apart from the great.

Having not read any of Leif Enger's work before I was drawn initially to the cover and liked the sound of the story.

An adventure set in a dystopian world, the book follows Rainy, a grieving musician on the run who sets sail on a sentient Lake Superior in search of his deceased wife. Along the way he encounters treacherous storms, societal decay, a shady cast of characters and a young girl named Sol.

To be honest, I'm still not totally sure about this one and can't definitely say whether I liked it, loved it or what?

It took me a while to get into. I enjoyed the second half a lot more than the first; thought the prose and writing was beautiful: ie - "as enemies go, despair has every ounce of my respect", but didn't always feel connected to the story.

Maybe I did really like it because I found myself thinking of Rainy and Sol a lot in the days after I finished and missed their adventure.

What I do know for sure is I will definitely be reading more of Leif Enger's work —I am now intrigued by his writing.

You can grab this one in Tuesday, April 2, 2024. When you read it, LMKWYT!

A big thank you to @groveatlantic and @netgalley for the advanced copy to read and review.

One of the best books I’ve ever read! Incredible writing. I highlighted so many beautiful sentences capturing the miracles and mayhem in this dystopian treasure.

I received the ebook for free as a Netgalley ARC. Must be honest and say I didn’t finish it because I don’t care for science fiction, but this is not to say I don’t recommend it. Enger brings to the story his quintessential originality for plot, character development, and fine writing. Anyone who has enjoyed his previous books and is a science fiction fan will love this book!

Set in a post-apocalyptic world, I Cheerfully Refuse has nothing to do with the title. It is set in a dystopian world where evil reigns. The melancholy prevails throughout the novel, which gets very dark at times. But I loved the way the narrator looks back in his life and tells his story. The setting was grounded in reality and the narrator goes on quite a journey.

The protagonist Rainey is on the run, pursued by a dark character that has disrupted his quiet, safe world. The story begins with a stranger's arrival to the home of a couple, who is carrying a book titled "I Cheerfully Refuse", and this is the book Lark, has been looking for a copy of for decades. Lark is the wife of Rainey, whom he has lost recently.

Set in the near future, Rainy, a musician with a heart of a poet, goes looking for his lost love. He meets a young girl named Sol and they together embark in an adventure. Sol is an absolutely remarkable secondary character and I liked her a lot.

The slower pacing of the novel and the slow development of the plot in the middle section are the only downer. I really missed one basic thing, the details of the relationship of Rainey and Lark.

It is an adventure cum dystopia which is quite entertaining. The story builds up gradually as the beginning doesn't really have a strong hook, but I kept reading anyway, partly because of the beautifully lyrical prose. It is a book of hope

Thank you @netgalley and @groveatlantic for this beautiful book.

#netgalley #icheerfullyrefuse #leifenger #dystopia #dystopicadventure #groveatlantic

It is important to note that most of the themes explored in this book deal with sensitive subject matters. My review, therefore, touches on these topics as well. Many people might find the book's subject matters & those detailed in my review overwhelming. I suggest you steer clear of both if this is the case. Please note that from this point forward I will be writing about matters that contain reflections on the death of a loved one, graphic violence, torture, forced confinement, the sexual abuse of a child, violent crime, lynching, grief, & others.

The good story begins with the voice of wonder speaking down from the clouds; sneaking blissfully through the wind; resounding like falling timber in the woods; offering the sounds of sonorous fantasia into the pulsing eardrum of the reader. The narrator may never be seen by the reader but for his resounding voice, which often feels too far away to chase & yet resounds with comfort, too close to release into the page.

Rainy’s narration is one of a man whom readers will love immediately. His story begins where all good stories do, with his heartstrings sewn tightly to the instrument he sets forward to play. As readers open the page to this chronology they will meet what defines the traveller’s furry; the incomparable emaciating infatuation of a story.

The cover art for this book gave me pause. I will always admit, with truth & compassion, that I judge books by their covers. I do not do this because my opinion matters more than the artist or the author whose time & investment crafted the joint nature of visual art. Rather, I do this because the beast's shell speaks to me or is silent.

I have been reading for a great many years, I state with certainty that I know when to listen to the tectonic murmur of a story & when to go on my way. This is not a science; sometimes books do not appeal to me or, in other cases, their colours seem to promise me the ruby & leave me empty-handed in the end. I enjoy reading so, it’s no love lost, either way. In this case, Enger chose wisely. The colourful painted world of his tale was brought to life on the cover & for this reason, I requested the opportunity to read what was held inside.

It was early in my reading experience that I realized that I could not eagerly run to the end of this book. It was too good to leave. I reached out to a friend, who will surely recognize himself in this section—rather what are friends for if not to support one’s adulation of reading? As it so happens, I knew he would love this book as much as me, yet, I was hesitant to tell him so because, at that point, I had only read about ten percent of the 300+ pages.

Every sentence reminded me of the joy I felt as a child, reading the adventurous series of books  « Amos Daragon : Porteur des masques » (2003) by Bryan Perro. As an adult, I felt that the years spent reading as a child shaped the world around me & I never stopped chasing the format that contained the stories I adored.

In adulthood, adventures & turmoil, hidden treasure, fantasy & lore, often disappear into the backdrop. Yet, readers of these genres, such as myself & my friend, often make our way indirectly to the origin of what was for us, the beginning of enchantment.

Enger welcomed me into his story after time away from such imaginativeness. The introduction will allow readers to ease their way into the milky sautéd waters of the Great Lakes which are home to me & my country’s neighbour. The story will be a dystopian nightmare, yet not ghoulish like the fanged villains who bomb the houses where children live, yet seething in a way that reminds readers why dreams of adventure are so deeply important.

In its essence, this is a story about death & grieving, & the ways in which our person dies a slow death waiting to rejoin those whom we have loved in this life. Rainy, the main character, is a man who is kind, he is tender & funny, smart & musically inclined. His narration of the story comes from a point in the future. The reader is unsure of why Rainy has chosen to share his recollections or if he knows that we are listening. However, these details are not as important as they may seem; Rainy has something to share & so he does. This excursion began when his beloved wife, Lark, was murdered in their home by a group of government bruisers who ransacked the house in search of a runaway prisoner.

I find this story difficult to review. I felt terribly sad when Lark was murdered & yet, I hardly knew her. In fact, Lark wasn’t a real person at all, she is a character in a book. Her character was warm, cunning, savvy & humorous, she was gentle & firm, empathetic & silly. Lark felt like the rain over dry crops; she was a person who brought life into the story by the mere mention of her person. It is no mystery to me why I felt so positively devastated by her untimely demise. Lark’s character enters the story & acts as the light that shines the way for Rainy. Their marriage is one that would make the most claustrophobic covet the cupboard to feel such snug warmth.

Lark was a keener of delicate & valuable books—readers will love her for this fact alone. She owned a shop in the town & roamed the country in search of estate sales & delicate treasures she may amass for her collection. In the world of this story, such treasures were rare & often miscategorized for their lack of immediate value, such as one would find in a tool or wire.

I suppose in some ways, I wanted the opportunity to visit Lark. I did not forget where I sat while reading this book nor did I envy the characters their world; a society in which rampant triads of gore shimmered in every horizon & sunrise. Yet, had the opportunity to visit her little shop of wonders been granted, I would have taken it. You see, I cannot pass up the chance to see what stories are beloved by another. Here we find ourselves at the heart of the story.

Though this book deals primarily with violence, the adventure of finding a person one has lost to death, & the trials of surviving in a gruesomely barbaric society; this story also teases the reader with sweets in the form of tales & first drafts, of chronicles that the bind knows the reader cannot pass up. The title of this book is the same as the one that Lark has pursued throughout her adult life. I am compassionate of her endless & tiresome travels, attempting to obtain the precious gem that has escaped her. When finally she finds it, her death follows soon after.

What is the purpose of this book? What is the goal when including a secondary author in the torment of grief that overshadows all other things? Readers may find that Enger confuses himself by encouraging Rainy to carry a book that Lark loved & yet never had the opportunity to ruminate on, throughout the months of his travels in search of her spirit reincarnate. Veteran readers, or readers who are people with days under their skies & dozens of meetings with the moon, will not begrudge Enger or Rainy their small comfort.

As referenced earlier, the goons who were responsible for Lark’s murder were chasing an escaped prisoner whose name was Kellan. His character is flawed, rather sullen, sulky & shy. However, Kellan is also patient, insightful, & kind. Though the reader never learns the details of Rainy’s age, they may come to look at him as a man in the middle; a person who has lived long enough to know the patterns & flow of life but who has enough spirit left in him to try something new & tempt fate, one more time.

The relationship that these two characters share is short-lived. Kellan runs away in the middle of Lark’s birthday party & Rainy sees him only upon arriving on the government’s prison ship. Yet, their time is well-spent & readers are given the layout of the viper’s nest that sits quietly in the tall grass.

Though I do not think it is my place—a reviewer’s place—to recap the story in its entirety, I hope this morsel suffices for readers who have yet to read the book, to engage their curiosity further by going to the source.  Enger writes a story that lingers in the mind. Every single character is a delight, even when they act as the antagonist to the melodramatic chants of the protagonist.

The feat of writing an adventure the likes of which rivals Homer’s “The Odyssey” (725 BCE), is incomparably difficult. Readers seldom forget themselves in their reading experience. Those who do are perhaps reading for escapism or are less critical of the world built around them; none of which are bad things. To be met with the dedicated talent of an author who understands their characters & the shadow figures of their imaginary world is a treat one savours upon encountering. Enger is an author whom I will seek out again.

What made this story so enthralling had perhaps less to do with the plot than it did with the characters. Rainy was not without his faults & none of the secondary characters were altogether trustworthy. In scenes, the reader meets people who are abusive, cruel, & tormented. The next chapters gently untangle a forgotten memory that Rainy wishes to share & it seems that the story is forgiven for the introduction of an annoying child or of a dirty malevolent predator.

Just as life is flawed & faulted by the very nature of its existence, so too was this story. The flow of the narrative captured what it meant to mourn a loss that was stolen; a thieved facet of what made life worth living.

The imagery presented throughout Rainy’s travels reminded me of home while also speaking to me in a language foreign to my understanding. The claim of this being a dystopian novel is factually correct, though I would hesitate to state that devourers of this genre of story will be met with their most beloved in this bind. Rather, this story appeals to readers because of its adventurous nature; wandering minds & analytic thinkers will have something to devour & deconstruct without necessarily stepping outside the confines of comfort.

The equation presented is one that a tired & true reader may have encountered before. In some ways, this reminded me of John Langan’s “The Fisherman” (2017), which is how I sold it to my friend, telling him that in this book he would find the classic storytelling of ancient philosophers & the clawing nature of the magistral beast that we both loved in Langan’s fantastical horror.

These points are not meant to discourage readers, on the contrary, I believe that one has certainly come upon a book that missed the heart of what their reader’s mind was seeking to find & I believe that I have been satiated by reading Enger’s book. Certainly, the storytelling style of a personal narration, mixed with memories, side notes featuring feelings, & characters the reader will never become acquainted with firsthand, may lead some readers to flounder; What is the purpose in so much detail?

While I reference my nameless friend so often it is not without purpose. There were times while reading when I wondered if my grasp of English was strong enough or if I had enough life experience to empathize with Rainy. On other occasions, I felt overexposed to feelings I kept locked away or memories that reminded me of my existence. Though I shall never come out & say the things that make me who I am & very rarely hint at them, the books that I appreciate—the stories that I love—do that for me.

To share such high esteem with another person is quite a vulnerable position. Rainy spends an entire novel speaking to the reader because they are a stranger. He knows how he may sound & he understands that he will come across, as sometimes shallow, & sometimes a silly dreamer, but he shares his experiences because this part of him has lived in his person for so long, & it has come time to set it free.

I knew I loved Rainy immediately & I rather hate myself for writing that sentiment here because I do not want you to know this. Rainy reminds me quite intimately of the hope I held a very long time ago. He remained nearly faceless throughout this entire story because, as all great love stories go, we met in the written word & we shall never have the chance to meet with eyes locked in understanding.

His deep-rooted admiration, tenderness, respect—his love—for Lark opened a soft spot for him in my mind & it was overwhelming to see him remain a man that a reader could trust, flaws & all. What kind of reader does this make me? Perhaps in the same way that Rainy sought refuge with the quietly gentle couple in the remote town near a Great Lake, so too have I tilted my head upward to meet the bear waiting for me in the forest.

Ultimately, as I wrote out my recommendation to my friend—a person who knows me well enough now to understand the grappling nature of sickness that cut off crumbs of paper for him to follow when it was his time—I remembered myself as a child, reading the great books that shadowed the hallways of the houses I frequented & the people whose minds they lived within.

A recommendation is a person’s way of saying; in this delicate treasure, you may find me, alongside the uncharacteristically earnest people who colour the ink. Perhaps, I feel brave because I read a story about a man who could not escape his grief. Maybe, in some way, this story was made magical because it reminded me of something else, or because the prose was more beautiful than a naturally grown rose, or the morning song of a bird waking one from slumber.

Certainly, the pilgrimage of grief exists alongside Rainy for the rest of his life. His story does not end as the reader closes the page to stare into silence. Rather, snippets of his joy, his cool water resounding mornings, his riddles & strums, the waves of his forearms & Ursidae heart, beat into the night like a drum whose belly is soft as the fur that once adorned it; tanned with the sorrow of a long & succulently devious life.

Thank you to NetGalley, Grove Atlantic, & Leif Enger for the free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Don't be fooled by the title of this novel- it's actually the title of a book which leads to so much tragedy. I'm the odd one out. I've always like Enger but this one, this one is just such a downer and so so melancholy. There are lessons to be taken from Rainey's determination to first see Lark again and then for young Sol but there's also much tragedy and despair. And there are more horrible people than good ones in this dystopian world. I liked the atmospherics on the Lake (not so much in the places Rainey visits or ends up) and the language is gorgeous. And I liked the acknowledgement of the Quixote parallel. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Make no mistake, this is a beautiful dystopian novel but it wasn't what I was expecting from Enger.

What an unexpected delight.

This was a small departure from the usual fantasy books I like to lose myself in, but this story was an adventure that ebbed and swelled and settled into itself. The first-person narrative through the warm and grounded Rainy was charming, and his relationship with every character, including the Flower, feels alive and tangible. Because the locales were so specific and descriptive — indeed, also characters in and of themselves — I'd wished I personally had more knowledge of the Great Lakes area, so I could really appreciate the love Rainy and this author clearly have for the region.

Occasionally, there were parts that gave me pause — a turn of phrase I wasn't familiar with, sentences that seemed awkward — but, to be honest, because of the first-person narrative, it wasn't inexcusable; Rainy was a personable and imperfect character and so some hiccups in his storytelling wouldn't be unexpected. The dystopian aspect of this novel is a bit vague, but again, when written from a first-person perspective as an intimate account of their journey, providing historical context needn't be a central part of it. I also didn't love how the story wrapped up in the last few pages, but it's perhaps the only way it could have ended, so I respect that as well.

A shout out to the portrayals of Lark and Sol as well, strong female supporting characters that never felt like they were just there as a support to the male lead. I Cheerfully Refuse did a wonderful job making each character feel whole in their own right; each character was the main character of their own story, and we as the readers share the privilege with Rainy of seeing this slice of theirs.

I loved how this story became a book that would absolutely live on the bookshelf in a cabin of a book lover's sea-faring vessel. I could see it being someone's home in a storm.

Thanks to NetGalley and Grove Atlantic for my first ARC!

Leif Enger's storytelling and characters always keep me reading and turning pages. This is another great story I loved
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

I received this from Netgalley.com.

Interesting read. Good story although it didn't completely capture my attention. I sometimes struggle with dystopian stories and just want the best for all characters.

3.75☆