LEIF'S JOURNEY

Leif, just coming into manhood on the northern prairie of Minnesota in 1881, must either find a way to make peace with his often angry father or leave the farm forever, as his older siblings have chosen to do.

His competently managed wintertime journey by snowshoe to a distant town to obtain supplies and his chance encounter with Anna, a teen who has been forced to flee a demented uncle despite blizzard conditions, inspire Leif to take a closer look at his unsatisfactory relationship with his emotionally abusive father. As his friendship with Anna deepens into love, a visit from his older sister provides Leif with the first tools to resolve the problems with his father in this heartfelt coming-of-age tale. The guileless language of Hokenson’s third-person narrative perfectly captures both Leif’s earnest simplicity and his wonderment at the wider world after the isolation of his rural upbringing. Historical details are spot-on. Leif’s tender attachments to his mother and Anna are sensitively depicted. His frustration and despair over his father’s anger provide ample conflict, but sometimes the man's behavior just doesn't seem hateful enough to justify Leif's level of angst. Readers may see through his father’s attitude long before Leif does. 

Readers of the genre will savor this immersive and ultimately satisfying tale of coming of age on the American prairie.