“If I could have ceased what pendulums swung, or wheels turned, or water clocks emptied, then, in order to keep the Fates from marching in time, I would have, for though it is what a boy naturally wishes when he fears change will come upon what he loves and take it away, a man remembers it, too, and in his heart wishes the same when all around him he feels only loss, loss that has been his companion for some time, and promises to remain at his side.”

Book Review:

Review by Betsey Van Horn  (MAY 25, 2011)

World War I was the deadliest conflict in Western history, but contemporary portrayals of war in literature and cinema primarily focus on examples of combat from the past fifty or sixty years. At a time when the Great War is receding into the annals of distant history, this elegiac and edifying novel has been released–a small, slim but powerful story of a young soldier, Josef Vinich, who hails from a disenfranchised and impoverished family in rural Austria-Hungary.

Josef was born in the rural mining town of Pueblo, Colorado, in 1899, to immigrant parents from Austria-Hungary who dreamed of a better life in the United States. The opening eleven-page prologue, a stunning and deeply felt family tragedy, is subsequently followed by a move back to the Empire, to his father’s village of Pastvina (which is now part of the Czech Republic). Josef’s father then marries a cruel woman with two young sons. They live the hardscrabble existence of shepherds, barely able to put food on the table, in the cold and brutal climate of the region. Josef and his father live for part of the year in a cabin in the Carpathian Mountains and ply their trade of husbandry in order to survive.

At the age of ten, Josef is introduced to his father’s Krag rifle, and is instructed in the art of hiding and hunting their prey. A distant cousin, Marian Pes–nicknamed Zlee–who was one year older than Josef, is sent to live with them. Zlee has an instinct for shepherding, and together they form a brotherly bond of love and respect. Josef’s sleep is haunted by dreams of loss and he gradually becomes distant from his father.

In 1916, when Zlee turns eighteen, both boys go to the conscription office to join up. Josef alters the age on his identity card so that he can go, too. During artillery training, they are recognized for their skill of aiming and shooting, and are sent to train as snipers, or “sharpshooters,” which in German is called Scharfschützen. What follows is a coming of age story set in the harsh climate and geography in the trenches of war–to Austria to train as Scharfschützen, and eventually to the sub-zero temperature of the Italian Alps.

Krivak writes with the precision and beauty of a finely cut gem and with the meticulous pace and purpose of a classical conductor. Every word is necessary and neatly positioned. His prose is evocative, poetic, and distilled. There is a place between the breath of the living and the faces of the dead, and that is where Josef’s soul resides. When the author takes the reader to the abyss of loss and the ghosts of Time, it is riveting. However, the emotional resonance was primarily potent in the prologue and only periodically in the body of the story, and was otherwise low-timbred and somewhat distancing. The narrative is so deliberately controlled that at times it felt antiseptic and dispassionate.

Krivak’s first novel is highly recommended as an addition to a library of World War I literature. This is an admirable debut, and it is evident from the prologue that Krivak is capable of crafting an emotionally satisfying story.

AMAZON READER RATING:	from 13 readers
PUBLISHER:	Bellevue Literary Press (April 19, 2011)
REVIEWER:	Betsey Van Horn
AVAILABLE AS A KINDLE BOOK?	YES! Start Reading Now!
AUTHOR WEBSITE:	Publisher page on Andrew Krivak
EXTRAS:	Reading Guide and Excerpt
MORE ON MOSTLYFICTION:	Read our review of: Work Song by Ivan Doig A Soldier of the Great War by Mark Helprin

Bibliography:

• The Sojourn (April 2011)

Nonfiction:

• A Long Retreat: In Search of a Religious Life (2008)

“Allegiance to a cause is a prickly thing. Put your hand to it just right, and there is the matchless feeling of being part of something greater than yourself. Grab on to it the wrong way, though, and it draws blood. ”

Book Review:

Review by Poornima Apte (JUN 29, 2010)

These days, one of the more famous attractions in Butte, Montana, is the Berkeley pit—a crater full of acidic water and toxic heavy metals. Now one of the costliest Superfund sites in the country, the pit is a remnant of what was once a roaring industry in the city—copper mining. Before the open pit mining technique as exemplified by the Berkeley pit took over the countryside, much of the copper mining in Butte was carried out underground.

It is this underground copper mining industry that forms the backdrop for Ivan Doig’s latest novel, Work Song. Set around 1918 and early 1919, shortly after the end of World War I, it includes a colorful assortment of characters and backdrops. Chief among these is the protagonist, Morrie Morgan, who, as the novel opens, has just arrived in Butte to make a fortune from “The Richest Hill on Earth.”

Morrie is also hoping the loud and raucous Butte will help him hide. He used to be Morgan Llewellyn of Chicago with a brother famous in the sport of boxing. A bet gone awry in a boxing contest has the Chicago mob hot on his heels so Morrie decides to escape.

Morrie soon finds boarding and lodging at the home of a widower, Grace Faraday. Grace also has two other renters who are on the last legs of their mining careers. Having lost his only belongings on the train up to Butte, Morrie must find work quickly. He takes up a job at a local undertaker’s and attends many a loud Irish wake in this capacity. Soon the crazy hours get to him and when he gets offered a job at the local library, Morrie jumps ship.

The head librarian is a legendary figure—an intimidating man both in stature and spirit, called Sam Sandison. He plays a major role in the book and his past history as a rancher adds a lot of color to the storyline.

The copper mining company in town is called Anaconda (just like its real-life counterpart) and soon enough, Morrie finds himself a part of the politics of work in Butte. Even if he is himself not a miner, through an old friend, Morrie meets Jared Evans, a union organizer. All the while, Morrie must watch his back not only for the Chicago mob who might have followed him here, but for Anaconda loyals who might do away with him if they found out about his union meddling.

Doig, who has visited the Montana countryside in his earlier book, Whistling Season, does a good job of painting the Butte from a time long past. “If America was a melting pot, Butte seemed to be its boiling point,” he writes. For it was here that the Serbians, Italians, Welsh, Polish, Irish and various other nationalities lived and worked together.

Butte around the time of the copper boom was also a hotbed of union activity. That same activism is described in these pages as Jared Evans tries to get a good wage and decent working conditions passed. Not only does he have to contend with the bosses of course, but also competing unions.

As the book nears its end, it feels like Doig doesn’t quite know where to take the story. The entire focus of the story line shifts to the composition of a song—a work song (this explains the title). Jared believes that a good and powerful workers’ song—one that can appeal to the various nationalities in Butte—will work wonders in improving unity and morale among union members. He asks Morrie to help him write it.

A good portion of the final pages is spent on this song and the story here really tries hard to tie it all together. There’s even a part where Morrie ventures down into the mines so he can meet with the miners and initiate talk about the song. The reasoning behind this adventure is flimsy at best. You can see that Doig is trying to make full use of his research about mines but is not quite sure how to integrate it into the plot.

Overall, Work Song suffers from a disjointed storyline. The colorful assortment of characters redeems the story somewhat. So does the Butte described within these pages. It is fascinating to get a sneak peek at history and to see how well Butte did before reckless exploitation of natural resources lead to severe environmental degradation. With similar unfortunate stories unfolding all around us, it’s easy to believe that history does have a way of repeating itself.

AMAZON READER RATING:	from 40 readers
PUBLISHER:	Riverhead Hardcover (June 29, 2010)
REVIEWER:	Poornima Apte
AVAILABLE AS A KINDLE BOOK?	YES! Start Reading Now!
AUTHOR WEBSITE:	Ivan Doig
EXTRAS:	Reading Guide
MORE ON MOSTLYFICTION:	Read our review of: The Eleventh Man

Bibliography:

• English Creek (1984)
• Dancing at the Rascal Fair (1987)
• Ride with Me, Mariah Montana (1990
• The Sea Runners (1991)
• Bucking the Sun (1996)
• Mountain Time (1999)
• Prairie Nocturne (2003)
• The Whistling Season (2006)
• The Eleventh Man (October 2008)
• Work Song (June 2010)
• The Bartender’s Tale (August 2012)

Autobiographical:

• This House of Sky: Landscapes of a Western Mind (1979)
• Winter Brothers: A Season at the Edge of America (1980)
• Heart Earth (1993)