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Undiscovered Country
Unaware that his life is about to change in ways he can't imagine, seventeen-year-old Jesse Matson ventures into the northern Minnesota woods with his father on a cold November afternoon. Perched on individual hunting stands a quarter-mile apart, they wait with their rifles for white-tailed deer. When the muffled crack of a gunshot rings out, Jesse unaccountably knows something is wrong-and he races through the trees to find his dad dead of a rifle wound, apparently self-inflicted.
But would easygoing Harold Matson really kill himself? If so, why?
Haunted by the ghost of his father, Jesse delves into family secrets, wrestles with questions of justice and retribution, and confronts the nature of his own responsibility. And just when he's decided that he alone must shoulder his family's burden, the beautiful and troubled Christine Montez enters his life, forcing him to reconsider his plans.
In spare, elegant prose, Lin Enger tells the story of a young man trying to hold his family together in a world tipped suddenly upside down. Set among pristine lakes and beneath towering pines, Undiscovered Country is at once a bold reinvention of Shakespeare's Hamlet and a hair-bristling story of betrayal, revenge, and the possibilities of forgiveness.
But would easygoing Harold Matson really kill himself? If so, why?
Haunted by the ghost of his father, Jesse delves into family secrets, wrestles with questions of justice and retribution, and confronts the nature of his own responsibility. And just when he's decided that he alone must shoulder his family's burden, the beautiful and troubled Christine Montez enters his life, forcing him to reconsider his plans.
In spare, elegant prose, Lin Enger tells the story of a young man trying to hold his family together in a world tipped suddenly upside down. Set among pristine lakes and beneath towering pines, Undiscovered Country is at once a bold reinvention of Shakespeare's Hamlet and a hair-bristling story of betrayal, revenge, and the possibilities of forgiveness.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published July 1, 2008
33 people are currently reading
1,174 people want to read
About the author
Lin Enger
15Ìýbooks63ÌýfollowersLin Enger has published two previous novels, Undiscovered Country and The High Divide, a finalist for awards from the Midwest Booksellers Association, the Society of Midland Authors, and Reading the West. His stories have been published in literary journals such as Glimmer Train, Ascent, and American Fiction. A graduate of the Iowa Writersâ€� Workshop, he has received a James Michener Award, a Minnesota State Arts Board Fellowship, and a Jerome travel grant. He teaches English at Minnesota State University Moorhead.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 160 reviews
July 24, 2008
This suspenseful novel will draw you in and keep you up late at night. The narrative is as stark and unforgiving as the Northern Minnesota geography it inhabits. Told by a wounded teenage narrator, it touches on Hamlet and has that play's brooding atmosphere, but the story pulls away from the source material in its final pages and comes into its own. Jesse's voice haunts the reader and you wonder in the end whether this is a story about justice or an Old Testament style revenge.
May 24, 2018
This fast paced story is a riff on Hamlet. Jesse Matson and his father are deer hunting off a lake and Jesse discovers his father partly decapitated. The local sheriff is a lush and rules it a suicide but Jesse isn't buying it. Jesse thinks that his uncle (the brother to Dad) has had a hand. No one else seems to agree, not Jesse's Mom or anyone else with power.
Jesse is dogged in his pursuit of truth, then he gets two pieces of information from two sources that put things in perspective for him and he again asks for an investigation causing all of the family and the leaders to resist. Jesse will not be stopped and he decides if the justice system won't give him relief, then he might have to render judgment.
There are many twists and turns and Jesse has to find truth and choose whether he will seek vindication. More than anything he discovers that the people that should care don't and it destroys him. His father appears to him throughout the story but his ghost doesn't offer guidance as one would expect or hope. Does Jesse's uncle still love Jesse's mother, twenty years later (they were briefly together in high school)? Is that motive enough to stage a suicide?
This is a taut story. It examines people's motives, character and the power of one's beliefs. Lin Enger delivers a fresh perspective on Hamlet.
Jesse is dogged in his pursuit of truth, then he gets two pieces of information from two sources that put things in perspective for him and he again asks for an investigation causing all of the family and the leaders to resist. Jesse will not be stopped and he decides if the justice system won't give him relief, then he might have to render judgment.
There are many twists and turns and Jesse has to find truth and choose whether he will seek vindication. More than anything he discovers that the people that should care don't and it destroys him. His father appears to him throughout the story but his ghost doesn't offer guidance as one would expect or hope. Does Jesse's uncle still love Jesse's mother, twenty years later (they were briefly together in high school)? Is that motive enough to stage a suicide?
This is a taut story. It examines people's motives, character and the power of one's beliefs. Lin Enger delivers a fresh perspective on Hamlet.
September 18, 2008
Although it is unfortunate that this book was published on the heels of The Story of Edgar Sawtelle and both use Hamlet as a springboard to tell a modern story of murder/death and revenge, I found both books unique in the way that they handled the material.
In Undiscovered Country, set in northern Minnesota, Jesse is out in the woods with his father on the last day of hunting season. When he hears one shot ring out, he somehow knows something is wrong, then finds his father apparently dead by his own hands. Jesse finds this hard to accept and when his father's ghost tells him that Jesse's uncle killed him, his doubts increase.
The reason this was a page turner for me is that it is part thriller - did his uncle kill his older brother? was Jesse's mom somehow involved? is Jesse having psychological problems that make him not believe that his father could have killed himself? and part character study of a young man who was close to his father and is conflicted over what he must do.
The frame of having the older, wiser Jesse narrate the story is also an interesting device. I won't put any spoilers here as to whether he avenges his father by killing his uncle or comes to accept that his father's death was a suicide. Some of the minor characters are not fully realized but his girlfriend Christine is well drawn and the fact that she is dealing with her own family's dysfunction along with strongly held feelings on right and wrong provide Jesse with an extra problem to wrestle with.
Comparing Edgar Sawtelle & Undiscovered Country - I would rate this one much higher as a thriller and a very accessible read while is the more literary read. Both of them will find their audiences.
In Undiscovered Country, set in northern Minnesota, Jesse is out in the woods with his father on the last day of hunting season. When he hears one shot ring out, he somehow knows something is wrong, then finds his father apparently dead by his own hands. Jesse finds this hard to accept and when his father's ghost tells him that Jesse's uncle killed him, his doubts increase.
The reason this was a page turner for me is that it is part thriller - did his uncle kill his older brother? was Jesse's mom somehow involved? is Jesse having psychological problems that make him not believe that his father could have killed himself? and part character study of a young man who was close to his father and is conflicted over what he must do.
The frame of having the older, wiser Jesse narrate the story is also an interesting device. I won't put any spoilers here as to whether he avenges his father by killing his uncle or comes to accept that his father's death was a suicide. Some of the minor characters are not fully realized but his girlfriend Christine is well drawn and the fact that she is dealing with her own family's dysfunction along with strongly held feelings on right and wrong provide Jesse with an extra problem to wrestle with.
Comparing Edgar Sawtelle & Undiscovered Country - I would rate this one much higher as a thriller and a very accessible read while is the more literary read. Both of them will find their audiences.
July 28, 2008
this ended up being a real page turner. a modern retelling of Hamlet, I thought I knew what would happen...but it remained a fresh story the whole way through. and i always appreciate a mature young man as narrator. it's a little higher than a 4 for me.
December 23, 2018
Beautifully written, highly engaging read. Well worth your time.
September 9, 2008
This first novel is 2008's rather less well known retelling of the story of Hamlet (cough - - cough, cough). A boy goes on a hunting trip with his dad. His dad ends up shot to death. Suicide or murder? An uncle is the prime suspect.
Lin Enger has written a taut thriller that roams the bleak landscape of Minnesota in winter as well as the emotional interior landscape of a boy struggling with the truth of his father's death. But despite the great writing, the fact that the story is so predictable works against the book. Knowing the inevitable outcome left me feeling unsatisfied throughout much of Enger's tale and some of the Hamlet parallels seemed forced or phony. Worth a read but not a classic. I'll look forward to Enger's next book.
Lin Enger has written a taut thriller that roams the bleak landscape of Minnesota in winter as well as the emotional interior landscape of a boy struggling with the truth of his father's death. But despite the great writing, the fact that the story is so predictable works against the book. Knowing the inevitable outcome left me feeling unsatisfied throughout much of Enger's tale and some of the Hamlet parallels seemed forced or phony. Worth a read but not a classic. I'll look forward to Enger's next book.
September 25, 2023
As much as it bothered me that the author chose not to use quotation marks, I was drawn into the story immediately! This was such a beautiful suspenseful story told through Jesse as a teen but written down and remembered by him as an adult. Trigger Warning: This does have some discussion of suicide in the first couple of pages. For some characters as you get further into the story deals with family domestic abuse. Enger takes you on a journey of grief, loss, friendship, family, and love. Jesse is set on seeking revenge when he whole heartedly believes his father did not commit suicide but was murdered during one of their hunting trips. Secrets keep unfolding as Jesse dedicates the rest of his school year in finding out who murdered his father. Suspicions only become greater when his Uncle Clay starts coming around more often and his mother is pulled out of her depressive state by his present on Christmas day. I couldn't put this book down and was engrossed in every page needing to know the truth that Jesse was so determined to find.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 30, 2019
Four stars for the writing, still absorbing the story. Definitely enjoyed reading books so strongly located from two brothers. Some great brother insights in this story, like
p77
I took his shoulders in my hands, looked as deeply into his eyes as he'd let me, and saw there, in large part, what my role in life was going to be for the next decade or so, until he grew up. I saw it with clarity -- and I was not mistaken.
& relationship insights, like
p207
The fact is, both of us that night required exactly what the other could not give -- someone with an unencumbered soul, someone to listen -- and it strikes me now that the problems we have with those we love can often be explained this way. Attracted as we are to kindred spirits, to those with similar strengths or facing similar crises, often what we need from them simply is not available.
p248
... I didn't push because I didn't want her to push back. It was a scrupulous dance we performed, circling each other, keeping our distance.
p77
I took his shoulders in my hands, looked as deeply into his eyes as he'd let me, and saw there, in large part, what my role in life was going to be for the next decade or so, until he grew up. I saw it with clarity -- and I was not mistaken.
& relationship insights, like
p207
The fact is, both of us that night required exactly what the other could not give -- someone with an unencumbered soul, someone to listen -- and it strikes me now that the problems we have with those we love can often be explained this way. Attracted as we are to kindred spirits, to those with similar strengths or facing similar crises, often what we need from them simply is not available.
p248
... I didn't push because I didn't want her to push back. It was a scrupulous dance we performed, circling each other, keeping our distance.
September 22, 2021
Set in northern Minnesota, the story unfolds around a family with complicated relationships and quite a few secrets.
Jesse and his dad are in their deer stands, when Jesse hears a gun shot ring out at the wrong time. Discovering his father dead, Jesse is overcome with questions about what happened.
Enger sets up a complex puzzle at the center of the investigation and leads the reader on a chase to discover what happened.
I was drawn in immediately and empathized with Jesse. Good story line, good puzzle, good resolution, and good ending.
Jesse and his dad are in their deer stands, when Jesse hears a gun shot ring out at the wrong time. Discovering his father dead, Jesse is overcome with questions about what happened.
Enger sets up a complex puzzle at the center of the investigation and leads the reader on a chase to discover what happened.
I was drawn in immediately and empathized with Jesse. Good story line, good puzzle, good resolution, and good ending.
January 30, 2018
No ordinary story. No ordinary ending.
November 7, 2023
Slow. So slow. Overall I liked the story but I just couldn’t get into it. And why didn’t the author use quotation marks with the dialogue?
January 8, 2022
I like his character development. Maybe it is living in rural Minnesota during the winter that I can identify with the characters. Or at least the setting.
February 22, 2021
Modern day retelling of Hamlet. Death of father � murder or suicide? And how is his mother involved? Two questions bothering the protagonist in this coming-of-age novel which reminded me of Erdrich’s Round House in the teen protagonist trying to avenge a parent.
May 14, 2008
I would feel bad posting an "eh" review so early if this were Amazon, but do people really make buying decisions based on what strangers say on Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ?
I didn't love this. It's a retelling of Hamlet (more or less) set in northern Minnesota. I'm more than cool with Hamlet and with Minnesota (has the Guthrie already put those two ideas together at some point?). But this book basically gave up on the source material halfway through, and I got distracted by looking for it when it was gone ("wait, is he Polonius? Is anyone Polonius?"). As for the Minnesota aspect, it felt a little like it was trying too hard, or maybe taking the easy obvious route. This novel, like a bunch of movies set in the upper Midwest, lets you know where it takes place by incorporating deer hunting, ice fishing, and a bar called the Valhalla. Midwestern literature has some growing up left to do, I think.
I'm interested to see what will happen to this book when it comes out a month after , which is a retelling of Hamlet on a dog farm in Wisconsin and has glowing advance blurbs from a bunch of people...
I didn't love this. It's a retelling of Hamlet (more or less) set in northern Minnesota. I'm more than cool with Hamlet and with Minnesota (has the Guthrie already put those two ideas together at some point?). But this book basically gave up on the source material halfway through, and I got distracted by looking for it when it was gone ("wait, is he Polonius? Is anyone Polonius?"). As for the Minnesota aspect, it felt a little like it was trying too hard, or maybe taking the easy obvious route. This novel, like a bunch of movies set in the upper Midwest, lets you know where it takes place by incorporating deer hunting, ice fishing, and a bar called the Valhalla. Midwestern literature has some growing up left to do, I think.
I'm interested to see what will happen to this book when it comes out a month after , which is a retelling of Hamlet on a dog farm in Wisconsin and has glowing advance blurbs from a bunch of people...
March 31, 2009
The premise of the book drew my attention: a retelling of Hamlet in a northern Minnesota setting. The stark setting of a small town in the grip of winter cold is a suitable backdrop to a tale of revenge. Enger's descriptions of both characters and setting are powerful and evocative.
Several aspects of the novel bothered me, however. First, the insertions of characters' comments and analysis of the Shakespeare play were jarring. Second, the teenage narrator and his girlfriend come off as unrealistically mature. Third, the place names are ridiculous, even comical. Battlepoint in Fatwater County, MN? I don't think so. Compared to other fictional Minnesota place names like Lake Woebegone and Gopher Prairie, these are embarrassing. Finally, and most troubling, his telling of this terrible story of revenge seems only to justify the narrator's actions. This guy should be in jail, or if not in jail, at least in therapy, haunted by the violence he's committed. If you want to read a powerful story of what revenge does to the would-be avenger, read Shakespeare. The rest is silence--or, as in this case, should be silence.
Several aspects of the novel bothered me, however. First, the insertions of characters' comments and analysis of the Shakespeare play were jarring. Second, the teenage narrator and his girlfriend come off as unrealistically mature. Third, the place names are ridiculous, even comical. Battlepoint in Fatwater County, MN? I don't think so. Compared to other fictional Minnesota place names like Lake Woebegone and Gopher Prairie, these are embarrassing. Finally, and most troubling, his telling of this terrible story of revenge seems only to justify the narrator's actions. This guy should be in jail, or if not in jail, at least in therapy, haunted by the violence he's committed. If you want to read a powerful story of what revenge does to the would-be avenger, read Shakespeare. The rest is silence--or, as in this case, should be silence.
July 22, 2008
Yet another Minnesota author, the brother of Leif Enger. This story centered on a 17 year old boy who loved his father very much. One day while they were deer hunting, the boy finds his father shot dead. The coroner, doctor, minister,and family all accept the decision that it was a suicide, but the son refuses to do so. He is determined to prove himself right. Parts of the story probably suspend belief, and it certainly isn't a particularly happy story, but I enjoyed reading it.
November 25, 2008
I had a hard time reading this book in the beginning because I think it's one that should be read quickly. I had to keep starting and stopping frequently and I just couldn't get into it. As soon as I had a few days to just READ...I really enjoyed it. I really enjoyed the author's view on the immature feelings of a seventeen year old boy. Wrap up in a blanket because he describes some very cold and chilling events.
January 24, 2013
I'm glad to see I wasn't the only one who thought this was a Leif Enger book. I loved Leif's books; this one by Lin, not so much. For example, if you are going to write a modern retelling of "Hamlet", don't have your character point out to the reader how much his situation is like "Hamlet". The book was okay, but the ending felt stretched out. I just wanted it to end. (I do recommend Leif's books, though.)
October 3, 2008
Admittedly I didn't read the whole thing, it was becoming way overdue and so many more obviously appealing books kept piling in for me to read. But I did read the beginning, a few chapters in between to get the gist, and then the ending. Haunting, thoughtful writing here.
July 9, 2008
This dark but beautifully written book is a Hamlet parable, much like Smiley's Thousand Acres....
July 9, 2008
great book that takes place in Minnesota, kept my attention.
April 23, 2009
Pretty good. Read it on the heels of Edward Sawtelle. Same story, right Will? Oh, by the way, happy birthday, and you still Rock! (I liked your original version...)
May 9, 2020
“Is there such a thing as forgiveness, this side of the grave?�
TW: suicide, murder, depression, domestic and child abuse, violence against animals, graphic depictions of dead bodies, loss of a loved one, repeated slurs and negative talk about people with special needs
Undiscovered Country follows a teenager trying to come to terms with the death of his father, whom he found dead while hunting. The coroner says it’s a suicide, but Jesse can’t believe his father would leave his family. When his father’s ghost appears to him and says he has to avenge his death and make things right, it seals his suspicions. But things aren’t always as they seem, and actually taking someone’s life is a lot harder than thinking about it...
“Getting even, I think, is the most natural thing in the world, a physical law, like gravity.�
This book. A Hamlet retelling in Minnesota? Yes please! I started out really, really loving this book. It’s dark, gritty, and so compelling. I just couldn’t put Undiscovered Country down! It just seems like such an innovative idea, I thought I was a newer book, but to my surprise it’s been out for over a decade! I don’t know why, but that really impressed me.
First, I think Enger really nailed the unreliable narrator aspect of Hamlet. Did Jesse really see his father’s ghost, or is it just his grief and anger? If it was murder, would his uncle really murder his own brother? And was his mom implicit in the murder too?
I have not lost anyone I know/love to suicide, so I don’t know how accurate my perspective is, but I do feel like how the family reacted to the father’s death was fairly realistic. The emotions surrounding any kind of death are complex. Jesse feels anger for his father for leaving the family to fend for themselves, especially considering their mom’s medical and mental health issues, and towards the murderer (if it was murder); grief over the man who seemed to happy and so committed to his family, and their happy memories together growing up; grappling with self-blame when he keeps trying to get justice/get back at the suspected murderer and can’t gather enough courage.
“Who did he think he was, ripping my life apart and stomping on it?�
“In a deeper place, though, my anger had no focus—if, in fact, it was anger at all. Because in large part it must have been fear. What if my best instincts, my truest impulses, were dead wrong? What if I couldn’t trust my own eyes and ears? I didn’t know which scenario was more threatening to me: my uncle, a murderer, walking free, or my own mind, for reasons of love and grief, hatching a conspiracy that had no connection to anything real.�
I will say that pretty much none of the characters except for Christine (the “Ophelia�) are particularly likeable, although sometimes you are rooting for Jesse. I don’t think it was overdone in this book though. I was perfectly fine not liking the characters. They are so just flawed and broken, and it fits the book and play well.
I really liked this book, for most of its length. And so I’ve thought about it a lot. But the more I think about it, the more I realize there are things that really bother me. I keep hopping between 3-4 stars, and here’s why:
-The author inserts references to the play “Hamlet� throughout the book. Stuff like “Who do you think you are, Hanley?�, mentioning how they read the play the previous year in English class, etc. I get it’s a modern retelling, so the characters are bound to have read it for school, but it disrupted the narrative and jarred me for a few minutes. It made the whole scenario less believable in those moments. Some more subtle references, such as “Nobody elected you king, Harold. That’s something you want to remember� were more apreciable (Harold is Jesse’s dad, and the mayor).
-The romance. This story doesn’t stick strictly to the source material in terms of Ophelia and Hamlet’s relationship. Ophelia is still stuck in an oppressive family situation, and she and Jesse belong to different social classes, but that’s where I saw the similarities stop for the most part. It was hard to get on board with the romance because the book didn’t show the passage of time well with their relationship and it’s development. And most of the page time spent with Christine is spent talking about the suicide/murder. However, I did really like Christine as a character. She has her own mind and morals, but she’s not willing to do to the same lengths as Jesse to get justice. In fact, she simply just wants to escape her life.
-The ending. So, from the start of this book we understand it’s purpose it to finally tell Jesse’s younger brother Magnus the truth about what happened before they moved away from Minnesota. We expect Magnus will find out in the end. He does, but we don’t really see his reaction or the ensuing conversation he would have with Jesse. Additionally, Jesse talks so much throughout the book that he’s trying to get justice so he can protect his family,l and how much he cares about his brother, but we don’t see very much of their brotherly relationship. It needed to be shown more, and line up with what Jesse was saying. What happens with the mom is a total cop-out to preserve ambiguity over whether or not, and how, complicit she was in her husband’s death. There’s still some ambiguity over what happened (which I like�-we know what Jesse thinks in the end but he’s still unreliable), but with the mom it was TOO much ambiguity. Additionally, I think UC had a lot of potential to explore more of the suicide/grieving route, but it didn’t. I think it would have had a more impactful message.
Overall, I still think it was a pretty good book and still recommend you give it a try! I don’t usually read thriller/mystery books, and when I do I don’t usually like them, but I enjoyed this one!
One last quote, because this conversation between Jesse and Christine is just so GOOD! (Note: this book doesn’t use any quotation marks, which might bother or confuse some people. I’ve read a few books like that so I’m used to it and I kind of like it)
Hey, nothing like this is ever going to happen again, and you know it.
That’s not the point, Jesse. The point is, it happened, and you can’t change it. I’m sorry.
I thought you loved me, I said.
I do love you. I’ll always love you.
But you won’t forgive me.
I can’t forgive you, Jesse. There’s a difference. Maybe if I came from someplace that was half normal I could deal with it. But I don’t. I’m broken, and you’re not the one who can fix me, because you are too.
TW: suicide, murder, depression, domestic and child abuse, violence against animals, graphic depictions of dead bodies, loss of a loved one, repeated slurs and negative talk about people with special needs
Undiscovered Country follows a teenager trying to come to terms with the death of his father, whom he found dead while hunting. The coroner says it’s a suicide, but Jesse can’t believe his father would leave his family. When his father’s ghost appears to him and says he has to avenge his death and make things right, it seals his suspicions. But things aren’t always as they seem, and actually taking someone’s life is a lot harder than thinking about it...
“Getting even, I think, is the most natural thing in the world, a physical law, like gravity.�
This book. A Hamlet retelling in Minnesota? Yes please! I started out really, really loving this book. It’s dark, gritty, and so compelling. I just couldn’t put Undiscovered Country down! It just seems like such an innovative idea, I thought I was a newer book, but to my surprise it’s been out for over a decade! I don’t know why, but that really impressed me.
First, I think Enger really nailed the unreliable narrator aspect of Hamlet. Did Jesse really see his father’s ghost, or is it just his grief and anger? If it was murder, would his uncle really murder his own brother? And was his mom implicit in the murder too?
I have not lost anyone I know/love to suicide, so I don’t know how accurate my perspective is, but I do feel like how the family reacted to the father’s death was fairly realistic. The emotions surrounding any kind of death are complex. Jesse feels anger for his father for leaving the family to fend for themselves, especially considering their mom’s medical and mental health issues, and towards the murderer (if it was murder); grief over the man who seemed to happy and so committed to his family, and their happy memories together growing up; grappling with self-blame when he keeps trying to get justice/get back at the suspected murderer and can’t gather enough courage.
“Who did he think he was, ripping my life apart and stomping on it?�
“In a deeper place, though, my anger had no focus—if, in fact, it was anger at all. Because in large part it must have been fear. What if my best instincts, my truest impulses, were dead wrong? What if I couldn’t trust my own eyes and ears? I didn’t know which scenario was more threatening to me: my uncle, a murderer, walking free, or my own mind, for reasons of love and grief, hatching a conspiracy that had no connection to anything real.�
I will say that pretty much none of the characters except for Christine (the “Ophelia�) are particularly likeable, although sometimes you are rooting for Jesse. I don’t think it was overdone in this book though. I was perfectly fine not liking the characters. They are so just flawed and broken, and it fits the book and play well.
I really liked this book, for most of its length. And so I’ve thought about it a lot. But the more I think about it, the more I realize there are things that really bother me. I keep hopping between 3-4 stars, and here’s why:
-The author inserts references to the play “Hamlet� throughout the book. Stuff like “Who do you think you are, Hanley?�, mentioning how they read the play the previous year in English class, etc. I get it’s a modern retelling, so the characters are bound to have read it for school, but it disrupted the narrative and jarred me for a few minutes. It made the whole scenario less believable in those moments. Some more subtle references, such as “Nobody elected you king, Harold. That’s something you want to remember� were more apreciable (Harold is Jesse’s dad, and the mayor).
-The romance. This story doesn’t stick strictly to the source material in terms of Ophelia and Hamlet’s relationship. Ophelia is still stuck in an oppressive family situation, and she and Jesse belong to different social classes, but that’s where I saw the similarities stop for the most part. It was hard to get on board with the romance because the book didn’t show the passage of time well with their relationship and it’s development. And most of the page time spent with Christine is spent talking about the suicide/murder. However, I did really like Christine as a character. She has her own mind and morals, but she’s not willing to do to the same lengths as Jesse to get justice. In fact, she simply just wants to escape her life.
-The ending. So, from the start of this book we understand it’s purpose it to finally tell Jesse’s younger brother Magnus the truth about what happened before they moved away from Minnesota. We expect Magnus will find out in the end. He does, but we don’t really see his reaction or the ensuing conversation he would have with Jesse. Additionally, Jesse talks so much throughout the book that he’s trying to get justice so he can protect his family,l and how much he cares about his brother, but we don’t see very much of their brotherly relationship. It needed to be shown more, and line up with what Jesse was saying. What happens with the mom is a total cop-out to preserve ambiguity over whether or not, and how, complicit she was in her husband’s death. There’s still some ambiguity over what happened (which I like�-we know what Jesse thinks in the end but he’s still unreliable), but with the mom it was TOO much ambiguity. Additionally, I think UC had a lot of potential to explore more of the suicide/grieving route, but it didn’t. I think it would have had a more impactful message.
Overall, I still think it was a pretty good book and still recommend you give it a try! I don’t usually read thriller/mystery books, and when I do I don’t usually like them, but I enjoyed this one!
One last quote, because this conversation between Jesse and Christine is just so GOOD! (Note: this book doesn’t use any quotation marks, which might bother or confuse some people. I’ve read a few books like that so I’m used to it and I kind of like it)
Hey, nothing like this is ever going to happen again, and you know it.
That’s not the point, Jesse. The point is, it happened, and you can’t change it. I’m sorry.
I thought you loved me, I said.
I do love you. I’ll always love you.
But you won’t forgive me.
I can’t forgive you, Jesse. There’s a difference. Maybe if I came from someplace that was half normal I could deal with it. But I don’t. I’m broken, and you’re not the one who can fix me, because you are too.
November 16, 2021
OMG, I cannot imagine the horror of being in the woods, hearing the sound of a rifle shot, then finding your Dad below his tree stand with half his head blown off. Worse than what my cousins experienced when finding our uncle dead in the tree stand from a massive heart attack.
Jesse's mom is no comfort nor support for him or his younger brother, Magnus, after the tragic loss of their Dad. She is almost catatonic. Jesse is upset when she refuses to reopen the restaurant, Valhalla, based on advice from Uncle Clay, Dad's younger brother who is perpetually in trouble, unable to take care of himself altho he does have a job that Dad helped him get. How is it that Clay can afford to dress so smart & drive that sporty little car? Clay's wife died of cancer a few years ago so he is living in her family's home that he inherited after she died. Jesse does not trust Uncle Clay because he dated his mom in high school and certainly never measured up to his Dad, a can-do guy, with a big heart, who took care of people in their little town, including helping the sheriff get re-elected when folks started to doubt his abilities.
Jesse goes to the sheriff to share his doubts about hid Dad's suicide more than once, and the sheriff simply but kindly tells him that there is no evidence to indicate is his a homicide. Then, Jesse hatches a plan to prove his Uncle Clay murdered his Dad. First, sending an anonymous note which Clay reacts to. Next, he talks to the town's trumpet player, a simple minded man & brother of Clay's deceased wife, who Clay has been looking after. He tells Jesse, with some prompting, that he saw Clay take a rifle from the house & later, drop it in the lake. Clay denies the whole thing. The sheriff is skeptical and again points out that he has no evidence. The BIL then disappears. Did Clay kill him too? Now I'm wondering if he killed his wife too.
Jesse's Latina GF, Christine, is lovely & so tender with him. When her family brings her dad home from prison, Jesse meets him unexpectedly, noticing that his face is disfigured from a fight and that the Mom is afraid of him. It doesn't take long before his laments about anything wrong being someone else's fault lead to beating his wife & daughter. Jesse confides that he is planning to kill his Uncle & Christine's reaction is to take him to mass & receive holy communion. They make a good pair. She saves him. Despite feeling guilty about leaving her mom & younger sister, Christine is ready to run away to escape her Dad's brutality.
Won't spoil it by writing about the choices these two young people made........read it yourself. You will not be disappointed.
Jesse's mom is no comfort nor support for him or his younger brother, Magnus, after the tragic loss of their Dad. She is almost catatonic. Jesse is upset when she refuses to reopen the restaurant, Valhalla, based on advice from Uncle Clay, Dad's younger brother who is perpetually in trouble, unable to take care of himself altho he does have a job that Dad helped him get. How is it that Clay can afford to dress so smart & drive that sporty little car? Clay's wife died of cancer a few years ago so he is living in her family's home that he inherited after she died. Jesse does not trust Uncle Clay because he dated his mom in high school and certainly never measured up to his Dad, a can-do guy, with a big heart, who took care of people in their little town, including helping the sheriff get re-elected when folks started to doubt his abilities.
Jesse goes to the sheriff to share his doubts about hid Dad's suicide more than once, and the sheriff simply but kindly tells him that there is no evidence to indicate is his a homicide. Then, Jesse hatches a plan to prove his Uncle Clay murdered his Dad. First, sending an anonymous note which Clay reacts to. Next, he talks to the town's trumpet player, a simple minded man & brother of Clay's deceased wife, who Clay has been looking after. He tells Jesse, with some prompting, that he saw Clay take a rifle from the house & later, drop it in the lake. Clay denies the whole thing. The sheriff is skeptical and again points out that he has no evidence. The BIL then disappears. Did Clay kill him too? Now I'm wondering if he killed his wife too.
Jesse's Latina GF, Christine, is lovely & so tender with him. When her family brings her dad home from prison, Jesse meets him unexpectedly, noticing that his face is disfigured from a fight and that the Mom is afraid of him. It doesn't take long before his laments about anything wrong being someone else's fault lead to beating his wife & daughter. Jesse confides that he is planning to kill his Uncle & Christine's reaction is to take him to mass & receive holy communion. They make a good pair. She saves him. Despite feeling guilty about leaving her mom & younger sister, Christine is ready to run away to escape her Dad's brutality.
Won't spoil it by writing about the choices these two young people made........read it yourself. You will not be disappointed.
May 18, 2021
I have read several books by Leif Enger, and I am a fan of his. (I especially liked Peace Like a River.). That is how I heard about Lin Enger, Leif’s brother, and so I decided to give his writing a try as well. I liked most of this book. I was hooked from the beginning, and was compelled to read right through it in a weekend, but have to say I did not like the ending. I liked the way the author wrote. I felt like even when a part seemed somewhat predictable, he managed to surprise readers with an unexpected curveball every now and again. I liked that for much of the first half of book you were really not sure whether the main character had lost his sane mind, or his dad truly had been murdered. What I did not like was: a) the mother—so lacking in character, integrity, sanity, strength, love for anyone. This made me wonder how much she knew. Did she and Clay started their affair long ago? Did she know her lover killed her husband? and b) the ending. There was no justice in the end. While I know not every book can or should have a happy ending, this ending was so dissatisfying. There was no true justice. The ‘bad guy� so to speak was killed (Clay), and so you could call that justice of sorts, but because his murderer (Jesse) was never caught, never confessed, and just went on living life as if that horrible incident had not happened, I felt unsettled about all of that! Jesse chose to take matters into his own hands, killed his uncle (Clay) because he (Clay) had killed his own brother (Jesse’s dad), and then moved to CA and became a professor. Makes you wonder how many uncaught murderers are out there, walking scott-free, as if they hadn’t done it. Sociopaths? Psychopaths? At the least insane? I think a really good editor could have helped Enger improve the ending.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 28, 2023
I hate to give only two stars, as the writing is good. That, and it wasn’t so bad that I didn’t come back to find out how it ended. Those are the positives. I am a HUGE fan of the author’s brother’s work, and so I came in with certain unfair expectations, perhaps, not just of talent but of style and content.
The story aims to retell Hamlet in modern times. I wish that connection had just been left to the reader to make, but instead was laid right out for us by the characters.
I read not with the feeling of the narrator’s inner turmoil, nor with many sympathies for the characters, but instead just a bleh sense of their permeating bitterness. Christina, while attempting to serve as the character with her feet on the ground, was to me unconvincing and irritating.
By the end, the author’s descriptive strengths started to feel like sludge I had to get through to say I finished the book. I just didn’t care enough about what was being said to want to sit in drawn out details.
I’m sure I will appreciate other work by this author, but this one was a no for me.
The story aims to retell Hamlet in modern times. I wish that connection had just been left to the reader to make, but instead was laid right out for us by the characters.
I read not with the feeling of the narrator’s inner turmoil, nor with many sympathies for the characters, but instead just a bleh sense of their permeating bitterness. Christina, while attempting to serve as the character with her feet on the ground, was to me unconvincing and irritating.
By the end, the author’s descriptive strengths started to feel like sludge I had to get through to say I finished the book. I just didn’t care enough about what was being said to want to sit in drawn out details.
I’m sure I will appreciate other work by this author, but this one was a no for me.
May 15, 2017
Author Enger's use of northern Minnesota and its hunting/fishing culture provides an apt setting for a modern reworking of Hamlet. Hunting deer one cold, late afternoon with his father, Jesse hears the rifle shot that he discovers has killed his father. Obsessed with dreams and visions of his dad, the teen seeks justice and revenge as his mother's relationship deepens with the killer, his Uncle Clay.
A taut narrative with a touch of romance between Jesse and a classmate who suffers an abusive father which adds to the tension as the tale comes to its climax.
Well-written with excellent use of setting and descriptive, colorful diction that evokes the harsh winter environment but also the lush forest of the north. Characters are well-developed although the mother is weakly drawn.
Recommended for mystery readers as well as those who enjoy a well-written although predictable --- hey, it's Hamlet---tale.
A taut narrative with a touch of romance between Jesse and a classmate who suffers an abusive father which adds to the tension as the tale comes to its climax.
Well-written with excellent use of setting and descriptive, colorful diction that evokes the harsh winter environment but also the lush forest of the north. Characters are well-developed although the mother is weakly drawn.
Recommended for mystery readers as well as those who enjoy a well-written although predictable --- hey, it's Hamlet---tale.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 13, 2020
As others have noted, this novel relies on parallels to Hamlet but they are announced too often, rather than implied or shown.
Fathers and sons, sons and uncles, sons and mothers, retribution, forgiveness, the inability to act, the need to craft a tight plan, the impact psychologically and physically of enacting a plan, the yearning for love (and its demands), the will to kill that which seems unforgivable, and living with the consequences of each decision link to Shakespeare.
Enger captures setting (time, place, weather) with photographic skill. Somehow Jesse comes across as too mature for all he does? And the dream sequences are unnerving. That Jesse continues to care for Magnus after the deaths of their parents, after the move away from Minnesota and Jesse becoming a college teacher and writer, rings true, but for me is left clipped by book's end.
Not sorry to have read the novel. Just left a bit deflated.
Fathers and sons, sons and uncles, sons and mothers, retribution, forgiveness, the inability to act, the need to craft a tight plan, the impact psychologically and physically of enacting a plan, the yearning for love (and its demands), the will to kill that which seems unforgivable, and living with the consequences of each decision link to Shakespeare.
Enger captures setting (time, place, weather) with photographic skill. Somehow Jesse comes across as too mature for all he does? And the dream sequences are unnerving. That Jesse continues to care for Magnus after the deaths of their parents, after the move away from Minnesota and Jesse becoming a college teacher and writer, rings true, but for me is left clipped by book's end.
Not sorry to have read the novel. Just left a bit deflated.
April 22, 2018
Our challenge book for December. Dad skipped out on this one (after I skipped out on November). 🙂
I liked it but didn’t entirely love it.
Liked the MN winter setting. Liked the kid and his inner thoughts. Found some of the mom / kid stuff handled a bit weird. Liked the little brother stuff. Hated the girlfriend’s dad storyline and found it a bit distracting. Some unexpected twists. I liked it better at the beginning than the end.
I would be interested in reading what Enger does next.
Now all I can think about is how long it’s been since I’ve been out on a frozen lake visiting the ice fisherman. You would NOT even believe how much stuff some of them put in their icehouses. I mean we’re talking electric generator-powered heaters and TVs and all kinds of crazy stuff. NO JOKE!
I liked it but didn’t entirely love it.
Liked the MN winter setting. Liked the kid and his inner thoughts. Found some of the mom / kid stuff handled a bit weird. Liked the little brother stuff. Hated the girlfriend’s dad storyline and found it a bit distracting. Some unexpected twists. I liked it better at the beginning than the end.
I would be interested in reading what Enger does next.
Now all I can think about is how long it’s been since I’ve been out on a frozen lake visiting the ice fisherman. You would NOT even believe how much stuff some of them put in their icehouses. I mean we’re talking electric generator-powered heaters and TVs and all kinds of crazy stuff. NO JOKE!
January 24, 2018
This was a really interesting book that was very powerful, and showed the effects of loss and revenge. Throughout the story it seems that the main character, Jesse, is torn apart by his need for revenge in order to find closure. Undiscovered Country does a great job of describing to the reader the inner conflict Jesse is going through. The ending is quite dramatic, and brings the story to a close you expect from quite early on in the story. I highly recommend this book for those of you who are looking for a mysterious plot filled with: revenge, passion, pain, and heartache. It is full of twists and turns and is such an elaborate and complicated story.
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