Driftless

In Driftless, author David Rhodes shows us that simple rural living holds in it all the complexities of human nature and the cycle of life. The story takes place in the beautiful, geologically significant southwest corner of Wisconsin from which the book gets its title. The fictional town of Words, Wisconsin has not escaped the effects of the fast moving twenty-first century. Many residents have left, and some who remain lament the loss of the past.

We come to know July Montgomery twenty years after he randomly accepted a ride with a Wisconsin farmer and settled in to become one himself. Has he found the human connections and sense of being alive he realized he needed when he rode along to Wisconsin all those years ago? July’s friends and neighbors are introduced with deep intimacy and acceptance. Beautifully detailed descriptions bring their connections to their natural environment alive.

Adding to the depth and timeliness of this story are religion, government, and agribusiness. The characters’ struggles to deal with these both enhance and diminish their lives. The reader is gripped by their struggles and wants all to turn out well. It is difficult to leave Words when the book ends.

Driftless was published by Milkweed Editions, an independent nonprofit book publisher dedicated to publishing quality literature. Check out their website, http://www.milkweed.org/, for other books they have published.