Blue River [Hardcover]

Ethan Canin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1991

The long-awaited novel by the author of the bestselling Emperor of the Air is a story of astounding power and sensibility. Lawrence and Edward are two brothers who haven't seen each other in ten years. Lawrence--a drifter, a gambler, a man of questionable character--appears on the cautious Edward's doorstep, challenging his beliefs and forcing him to recall their tumultuous childhood and uncover a long-buried story of monstrous betrayal.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This eloquent story of two men destined to become "good brother" and "bad brother" is an ambitious but ultimately disappointing novel by the author of the acclaimed 1988 collection Emperor of the Air. Edward, a successful California ophthalmologist, finds a bum on his doorstep one morning, only to realize that it's his estranged brother Lawrence, whose life has gone steadily downhill. Edward manages to get Lawrence out of town, but the meeting has been an overdue awakening for Edward, and the remainder of the story consists of his examination of their shared past, written in a first-person narrative told to a "you" who is Lawrence. "Always do what you're afraid of," Lawrence had advised Edward when they were growing up in Wisconsin. Lawrence got into fights, seduced girls, stole, caused destruction. Edward was studious, active in the community. Each played the part assigned, it seemed by their mother, although Edward now thinks that Lawrence had a secret purpose in behaving as he did. The revelations of Edward's melancholy, truth-seeking exploration may lead to a rapprochement. Along the way, confusion about what happened in the ambiguous past, betrayals and the chaos of their shared history are unfurled with precision and grace. But Canin's attempt to get inside Edward's psyche results in a flattened tone and lack of passion, perhaps intended to provoke the reader into making his own judgment about which brother is good and which is evil. The effect, however, is to distance the reader too thoroughly; the characters' interior landscapes are bleak and the narrative lacks dramatic momentum. In the end, this promising novel is itself somewhat flat and disaffecting. $100,000 ad/promo; author tour.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Successful, self-contained Ed, who has a lovely wife, a lovely child, and the lovely, well-appointed home due a doctor, opens the door one day to find a ragged stranger on his doorstep. The stranger turns out to be his older brother, Lawrence, whom he has not seen for years. This unexpected visit prompts Ed to reconsider his childhood, dominated by the rebellious Lawrence, who fights, steals, and, after briefly reforming, shocks the town with a stunning act of violence. As Ed reminisces, Lawrence emerges as complex and thoughtful, a smart boy who encouraged Ed's interest in science and rebelled simply because it was the role assigned him by an anxious mother and a worshipful younger brother who turns out to be a bit duplicitous himself. Canin, author of the much-praised short story collection Emperor of the Air ( LJ 2/1/88), succeeds in creating believable and involving characters in his first novel. If his story structure occasionally seems too pat, his evocative prose occasionally in need of more burnishing, he has produced an affecting work. Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 6/1/91.
- Barbara Hoffert, "Library Journal"
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 222 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin; 1st edition (October 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0395498546
• ISBN-13: 978-0395498545
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,673,542 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Cry Me a Blue River., January 27, 2003

By 

S. A. Cartwright "Stu Cartwright" (Wayland, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Blue River (Paperback)

I picked up "Blue River" after breezing through two delightful reads, "Emperor of the Air" and "The Palace Thief" both by Canin. I recommend reading every one of the short stories in each of these two volumes.

"Tedious." This word kept popping into my head while I labored into "Blue River." I thought it was me. Surely this story would improve and flower into a marvelous and richly colorful Ethan Canin story. 75 pages, 100 pages, 150 pages. Would this ever develop into something readable? Should I give up?

I didn't. And I had to laugh at all the other reviews here on Amazon.com "Tedious" "The shortest book I never finished." Naturally. They are all correct. Believe the negative reviews.

"Blue River" is a hugely disappointing, cliche-filled, seemingly unedited, overly stylistic diatribe that is boring. Not very far along in the book, the protagonist yuppie eye surgeon is "chasing his demons" and daring to drive through Pacific Coast Highway switchback turns with his eyes shut late at night. Uh-huh. Most assuredly, you too will root for a good car crash. No such luck, however, and the reader is taken back through an awful Cain and Abel coming-of-age saga set in Blue River, Wisconsin high above the banks of the Mississippi. The worst part is that it is written in this horrific style of a letter from the younger, angst-laden yuppie brother to the older miscreant brother. "Lawrence, you didn't know I knew that you knew" sort of technique. Ugggh. Spare us.

It's a shame this book turned out so badly because Ethan Canin is a very talented writer. I have confidence this was an early set back in a very promising career, and I look forward to finding the next Canin novel in my public library.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars "The sky is no less blue because the blind man doesn't see it." Danish Proverb, December 7, 2010

By 

michael a. draper (Guilford, CT) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Blue River (Hardcover)

This is a story of the relationship between two brothers.

In his younger days, Edward admires his adventurous, dare-devil brother, Lawrence, who is six years older than Edward.

Years pass. Lawrence leaves home and hasn't been seen by Edward for fifteen years. Then, like an unrepentent Prodigal brother, Lawrence shows up at Edward's home, unannounced and in need of food and clothing.

Edward has become a wealthy eye surgeon in California while Lawrence is an out of work card dealer from Nevada.

What is the reason Lawrence has for coming? It seems as if he wants to re-establish his relationship with Edward, or maybe he's in some kind of trouble.

Lawrence does win the affection of Edward's five-year-old son, Jonathan. Lawrence acts insanely for Jonathan, flopping on the kitchen floor or making monkey noises while on an outing at the local zoo. Jonathan may enjoy this but Edward is skeptical.

Then, in a revealing moment, Lawrence asks his brother if he can stay a while longer. Callously, Edward refuses. He gives Lawrence some money and drives him to the bus station.

The story continues and Edward narrates his early days with Lawrence.

Nothing happens in this novel. Edward is a passive, sermonizing character with little to like. Lawrence is a Machiavellian, out for whatever thrill he can get.

I did feel a similarity with the brothers in "East of Eden." In Steinbeck's novel, Adam is goodhearted while Charles is violent and cynical.

"Blue River" has had mixed reviews and I continued to read, expecting the story to improve. It didn't. Cardboard characters, uninteresting plot and a novel without a message. Need I say more?

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing People Don't Like This, August 24, 2008

By 

A. Keston "The Kid" (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Blue River (Paperback)

Ethan Canin is one of my favorite modern novelists. That being said, I feel his books, while still good, have gotten progressively less interesting as he has gotten older. The first two stories in the Palace Thief are my favorite - along with Blue River.

Just the way Canin emotes the feelings created by the bonds of his characters in this book truly reveal how it feels to be a young man, what traits are revered by young men, what is found in oneself, and what is lost.

I don't know...not sure what there is here NOT to like.