OGALLALA

In this novel, a crime that unfolds in Ogallala, Nebraska, has far-reaching consequences for an indecisive man and the teenage girl he befriends.

Semi-retired Bennett, a man “accustomed to mild interest” in most things, embarks on a road trip to visit ex-girlfriend Jenn in Ann Arbor after she texts him out of the blue. He’s not expecting much but brings along lubricants and lotions just in case. Jenn, however, seems more interested in Bennett’s rental car than romance. Her teen daughter, Zoe, an MMA fighter, needs a ride to Utah for an important match. Zoe’s crusty trainer, Hector, tags along, coercing Bennett into stopping at a small Nebraskan town on the way to the fight. In Ogallala, Hector and his friend Hank continue treating Bennett as a chauffeur. They ask him to give them a ride to someone’s house, and he’s ordered to wait in a corn field. Sneaking to the house, he witnesses a murder. Involvement in the crime’s aftermath makes Bennett feel alive for once, but now he’s complicit. Still, he tries to be a positive influence for Zoe, whose perspective also shifts on this trip. Briefly staying with Hank’s kind sister-in-law and kids on a farm, she sees welcome alternatives to her usual life. The sense of place plays a large role here. Eichhorn skillfully captures the small-town ambiance, at least as seen through the eyes of educated urbanite Bennett. Bennett envisions Ogallala as a place with “a rat-infested motel” and thinks the flat plains “emptiness felt like abandonment.” The town’s predominant clothing style is “bib overalls and greasy T-shirts.” Amber, the sex worker Bennett meets, has a second job at Walmart. Yet Zoe inhabits a much different Ogallala, petting a pig, noticing the high corn, eating delicious homemade pie. Like the landscape, the characters also show many sides. Though appearing shallow, Bennett actually seeks substance. Violent Hector at times encourages both Bennett and Zoe, and Hank is a proud father. Zoe is an especially convincing portrait, insecurely poised on the brink of adulthood without receiving much help in how to get there.

Compelling and suspenseful, with characters and locales that often surprise.