Review by A_S_Park -- American River: Tributaries
-
A_S_Park
- Posts: 5
- Joined: 03 Feb 2018, 20:45
- Currently Reading:
- Bookshelf Size: 16
- Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-a-s-park.html
- Latest Review: McDowell by William H. Coles
Review by A_S_Park -- American River: Tributaries
[Following is a volunteer review of "American River: Tributaries" by Mallory M. O'Connor.]
4 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
American River: Tributaries is a historical, fictional novel by Mallory M. O’Connor, the first in a planned trilogy. It tells the story about the descendants of three immigrant families, one Irish, one Japanese, and one Mexican, and is centered around the American River in California, the place where their ancestors first settled upon arriving in America. We are first introduced to the three ancestors of the McPhalan, Morales, and Yoshinobu families, first generation immigrants who find themselves in California, all of them for different reasons. Afterwards, for the remaining large majority of the book we follow the third and fourth generations in the 60s.
The story follows a good handful of characters, but O’Connor switches between them with immaculate feeling, and only spends as much time as needed with each character before switching the focus to another. I must say that I am truly impressed by the author’s ability to juggle between so many different plot lines, most of which might seem unrelated at first, but then they are slowly weaved together. I found myself truly engrossed in the story, and what was happening to every one of the characters, whether we were following the musical career Carl Fitzgerald (born Morales), Marian McPhalan’s struggles with leaving her husband and trying to become a painter, the racial rift between Marian’s daughter Kate and their Japanese employees’ son, Tommy, or the tumultuous life of Kate’s older brother Julian. There are many different characters and a lot to keep track of, but each of them stands out in their own unique way. However, I should probably mention that if you are someone who struggles with having to keep several plot lines in your head at once, this book might not be the right fit for you. However, I thought it was a really fun journey to get to follow these characters, and I never found it becoming boring or tedious to read.
American River is an incredibly real portrait of the United States of America, as a land of opportunity, but also as a country with a complicated history, and many problems that exist still to this day. It really shines through that the book is meant as a sort of love letter to California, and it really makes you just want to be there on the peaceful Mockingbird farm, or in the bustling streets of San Francisco. However, it’s not all seen through rose tinted glasses; the author doesn’t shy away from calling out inequalities in society, the struggles people living in the USA there are faced with, and the outdated beliefs that are held by large portions of the population. It is clear that O’Connor is well-versed in this time period, and in the history of California. After I had finished the book I was also delighted to learn that she seemed to have drawn a lot of inspiration from her own life, such as her growing up by the American River, a love for art and music and her having also lived in Mexico.
The book is a beautiful but oh so painful illustration of what it’s like being an immigrant, or a 2nd, 3rd, or even 4th generation immigrant in America, and the hardships faced by the different generations – older generations having faced internment and whipping in the 1800s, to younger generations who face prejudice and racism on a much more psychological level, being viewed as the outsider despite being estranged from their ethnic heritage and being born and raised American. The book tackles themes of alienation with remarkable precision and empathy, and really tells the story of what it is like being, what we today would refer to as being a “third culture kid”, with this particular issue being explored most in depth in Tommy Ashida’s plotline. I also very much enjoyed how his feeling of being an immigrant is juxtaposed with Carl’s, a man of mixed race who passes for white, and is liked and welcomed by the same people who rejects Tommy for his Japanese heritage.
The common denominator for all characters is that they are all driven by the desire to find themselves, get more than they have, and to be more than what they are. You could say it’s the American dream in a nutshell. Listening to your heart, following your dreams, and dealing with the changes and consequences of doing so are also central themes in this book, and also how a search for identity can be just as much of an issue in your forties or fifties as if can be in your young teens. This especially, I found, made the characters incredibly relatable; I think everyone has at some point struggled with feeling like they don’t fit in, or with trying to find your purpose in life.
I do have to mention that there was one thing I wasn’t particularly fond of; at times, the descriptions and dialogue were lacking in vividness, and seemed quite stiff and robotic, and at times there were some hasty time skips that seemed mostly like the author was only eager to get to the next event and in the process, made the jump seem a bit forced and unnatural. However, this was mostly apparent in the earlier chapters of the book, and it became more and more colorful as the story progressed, so it didn’t really become a problem once I got really into the story, and it definitely didn’t worsen the overall reading experience because the interesting story really made up for it.
For me, American River: Tributaries is really a 4 out of 4 stars, because it was I book I truly enjoyed reading, and once I got really into it, it became very hard to put down. I felt like I really bonded with the characters, and that I could relate to them on so many levels, and the issues that are discussed are ones that are just as relative today as they were 50 years ago. While the resolution and end climax did come off as a bit out of the blue, I was still left intrigued by all the threads that were left loose, and I can definitely say that I will be waiting eagerly for the next part in the series because I really want to see how things turn out for everyone, and see O'Connor explore these themes in even more depth.
******
American River: Tributaries
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like A_S_Park's review? Post a comment saying so!
4 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
American River: Tributaries is a historical, fictional novel by Mallory M. O’Connor, the first in a planned trilogy. It tells the story about the descendants of three immigrant families, one Irish, one Japanese, and one Mexican, and is centered around the American River in California, the place where their ancestors first settled upon arriving in America. We are first introduced to the three ancestors of the McPhalan, Morales, and Yoshinobu families, first generation immigrants who find themselves in California, all of them for different reasons. Afterwards, for the remaining large majority of the book we follow the third and fourth generations in the 60s.
The story follows a good handful of characters, but O’Connor switches between them with immaculate feeling, and only spends as much time as needed with each character before switching the focus to another. I must say that I am truly impressed by the author’s ability to juggle between so many different plot lines, most of which might seem unrelated at first, but then they are slowly weaved together. I found myself truly engrossed in the story, and what was happening to every one of the characters, whether we were following the musical career Carl Fitzgerald (born Morales), Marian McPhalan’s struggles with leaving her husband and trying to become a painter, the racial rift between Marian’s daughter Kate and their Japanese employees’ son, Tommy, or the tumultuous life of Kate’s older brother Julian. There are many different characters and a lot to keep track of, but each of them stands out in their own unique way. However, I should probably mention that if you are someone who struggles with having to keep several plot lines in your head at once, this book might not be the right fit for you. However, I thought it was a really fun journey to get to follow these characters, and I never found it becoming boring or tedious to read.
American River is an incredibly real portrait of the United States of America, as a land of opportunity, but also as a country with a complicated history, and many problems that exist still to this day. It really shines through that the book is meant as a sort of love letter to California, and it really makes you just want to be there on the peaceful Mockingbird farm, or in the bustling streets of San Francisco. However, it’s not all seen through rose tinted glasses; the author doesn’t shy away from calling out inequalities in society, the struggles people living in the USA there are faced with, and the outdated beliefs that are held by large portions of the population. It is clear that O’Connor is well-versed in this time period, and in the history of California. After I had finished the book I was also delighted to learn that she seemed to have drawn a lot of inspiration from her own life, such as her growing up by the American River, a love for art and music and her having also lived in Mexico.
The book is a beautiful but oh so painful illustration of what it’s like being an immigrant, or a 2nd, 3rd, or even 4th generation immigrant in America, and the hardships faced by the different generations – older generations having faced internment and whipping in the 1800s, to younger generations who face prejudice and racism on a much more psychological level, being viewed as the outsider despite being estranged from their ethnic heritage and being born and raised American. The book tackles themes of alienation with remarkable precision and empathy, and really tells the story of what it is like being, what we today would refer to as being a “third culture kid”, with this particular issue being explored most in depth in Tommy Ashida’s plotline. I also very much enjoyed how his feeling of being an immigrant is juxtaposed with Carl’s, a man of mixed race who passes for white, and is liked and welcomed by the same people who rejects Tommy for his Japanese heritage.
The common denominator for all characters is that they are all driven by the desire to find themselves, get more than they have, and to be more than what they are. You could say it’s the American dream in a nutshell. Listening to your heart, following your dreams, and dealing with the changes and consequences of doing so are also central themes in this book, and also how a search for identity can be just as much of an issue in your forties or fifties as if can be in your young teens. This especially, I found, made the characters incredibly relatable; I think everyone has at some point struggled with feeling like they don’t fit in, or with trying to find your purpose in life.
I do have to mention that there was one thing I wasn’t particularly fond of; at times, the descriptions and dialogue were lacking in vividness, and seemed quite stiff and robotic, and at times there were some hasty time skips that seemed mostly like the author was only eager to get to the next event and in the process, made the jump seem a bit forced and unnatural. However, this was mostly apparent in the earlier chapters of the book, and it became more and more colorful as the story progressed, so it didn’t really become a problem once I got really into the story, and it definitely didn’t worsen the overall reading experience because the interesting story really made up for it.
For me, American River: Tributaries is really a 4 out of 4 stars, because it was I book I truly enjoyed reading, and once I got really into it, it became very hard to put down. I felt like I really bonded with the characters, and that I could relate to them on so many levels, and the issues that are discussed are ones that are just as relative today as they were 50 years ago. While the resolution and end climax did come off as a bit out of the blue, I was still left intrigued by all the threads that were left loose, and I can definitely say that I will be waiting eagerly for the next part in the series because I really want to see how things turn out for everyone, and see O'Connor explore these themes in even more depth.
******
American River: Tributaries
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like A_S_Park's review? Post a comment saying so!
Latest Review: McDowell by William H. Coles
