December 1, 2021
Thirty-two year-old Calem Honeycutt lives just down the road from his parents' dairy farm in the Missouri Ozarks. Calem never went to college, staying on to help his parents in the day-to-day running of the farm. Unfortunately, this magnificent countryside with a beautiful waterfall is being encroached on by outside forces, both political and economic, that are trying to force the Honeycutts to sell their land. Over a 24-hour period, Calem wanders the land wondering what is coming, musing about his relationship with his family and friends, and also reminiscing about some of the tragedy of his own past. Four-wheelers, fishing, and the beauty of the land are intertwined with the reality of government, economics, and big-business machinations that plague farmers in the region, leaving Calem to realize he may just have to make a decision he doesn't truly want to make. Author Senter manages to create a majestic and melancholy story of farm life, politics, and unwanted decisions in an amazing Ozark landscape.
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Starred review from November 1, 2021
A young Missouri man on a failing dairy farm contemplates what he feels will be the last day of his life in this novel. At the age of 32, Calem Honeycutt is already a homeowner, but he didn't move far from his parents. They are a mile away at their dairy farm in the Ozarks where Calem still works. He didn't feel like going to college or getting what some call a real job, as he is too tied to the life and landscape of his upbringing. ("There are two cricks that run through our land, three ponds, and a waterfall that will leave a hell of an impression if you're ever lucky enough to see it.") His parents are reliable and supportive, if somewhat stoic, though his sister, Caitlyn, whom he genuinely likes, is now an urban progressive liberal who is outraged by her family's conservative opinions. Calem hunts, fishes, and sees friends, but he is single and deals with despair. He has convinced himself this will be the last day he will ever live. He plows through the day, racked by memories of old times and fascinated by new views of familiar landscapes. Some fun is on the horizon, since he is going fishing with his friend Miles that evening. Even so, bad news comes in about the dairy farm, pushing Calem and his family toward new, possibly insurmountable anxieties. Senter's impressive novel is a truthful, honestly told story that puts a human face on a region that's steeped in tradition, brimming with the allure of nature, and grappling with the constant threat of being swallowed up by the latest corporate entity. Calem's world is intricately described as a land of four-wheelers, black walnuts, hog suckers, and Holsteins, and it's a place that offers seemingly endless freedom but brutal government and marketplace restrictions. The author's careful plotting, over the course of one remarkably intense day, defies expectations as it moves toward its haunting conclusion. A candid tale that triumphantly understands the Midwestern psyche, delivering moments of beauty and tragedy.
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