Where the Rivers Flow North [Paperback]

Howard Frank Mosher (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1989

The stories of Where the Rivers Flow North are "superior work, rich in texture and character," says the Wall Street Journal; "the novella is brilliantly done." That novella, the title story of the collection, was also made into a feature film starring Rip Torn and Michael J. Fox.

These six stories, available again in this new edition, continue Mosher's career-long exploration of Kingdom County, Vermont. "Within the borders of his fictional kingdom," the Providence Journal has noted, "Mosher has created mountains and rivers, timber forests and crossroads villages, history and language. And he has peopled the landscape with some of the truest, most memorable characters in contemporary literature."

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Mosher writes stories, almost folk tales at times, built out of lost and forgotten history, rooted in a strong sense of place, inhabited with colorful characters. His terrain may be specific, but his themes are universal."--USA Today

"Mosher is a remarkably good observer of nature as well as a born storyteller."--Boston Herald

"Mosher has a fine knack for evoking natural beauty--an otter sliding off an icy log, a loon whooping over a dark lake--and he has a convincing sense of adventure."--Los Angeles Times

"With each book, Mosher fleshes out more of his literary turf, a frontier brimming with men and women who follow their own rules."--Boston Globe --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From the Publisher

5 1/2 x 8 1/2 trim. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics); Mti edition (October 1, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140077480
• ISBN-13: 978-0140077483
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 4.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,444,868 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars MOSHER DESERVES WIDER ATTENTION, June 23, 2001

By 

Larry L. Looney (Austin, Texas USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Where the Rivers Flow North (Paperback)

I'm saddened to see far too many people pigeon-hole Howard Frank Mosher as a 'writer of regional interest' -- maybe only those who live along the Mississippi should read Mark Twain, then. True, Mosher's books all take place in Vermont -- but these are such well-written, absorbing stories, the characters so unforgettable, that any one who appreciates fine literature can thoroughly enjoy them.

This volume collects 6 of Mosher's short stories along with the title novella -- the latter being possibly his most well-known work, having been made into an exceptional film with the amazingly-talented Rip Torn in the role of a lifetime as Noel Lord, Mosher's cantankerous ex-lumberjack. Lord is mentioned in some of the other stories, as well as in some of Mosher's novels -- and other characters make appearances in more than one work as well.

Set in 1927 Vermont, 'Where the rivers flow north' takes the familiar theme of the rugged individualist going up against the evil, unfeeling corporation, and breathes new life into it. Mosher's flowing style, combined with his incredible ability to bring to the printed page all the nuances of his characters' personalities -- warts and all -- give this and all of his works the finishing touches that only a fine craftsman can give. Noel Lord's Native American housekeeper/wife, Bangor, is one of the most memorable characters you'll ever run across. She and Lord have a classic yin-yang relationship that, most likely, neither one would acknowledge. A reader from any part of the nation can get inside these people, can feel and experience everything that happens to them -- and any time we can do that, we can learn and we can grow.

The characters in all of the stories here are, as in all of Mosher's works, vividly drawn -- Alabama Jones, the innocent-but-worldly aspiring carnival performer -- Burl, an old woman lying in a nursing home waiting to die, looking back at her life with a combination of bitterness and longing -- Eban and Walter, brothers, neighbors, at odds in their life over things large and small, but brothers -- a man dying, clinging to life through a kept peacock -- a boy passes through a coming-of-age event, a flood, which changes forever the way he views both his brother and his father -- another man, Henry Coville, makes some painful recollections and decisions as he feels the end of his life approach. Mosher paints them all with the deft brush strokes of an artist who intimately knows his subjects and the landscape in which their lives are played out.

Howard Frank Mosher is an immensely talented, always entertaining writer -- he deserves to be widely read, and what a treat is awaiting those who read him for the first time...!

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must for all lovers of "Up North" Literature, November 25, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Where the Rivers Flow North (Paperback)

Outstanding. Suggested to me by a Vermont lover, it's my first Mosher book, and I cannot wait to delve into his others. This book begins with six short stories, and then the "novella" that is the title of the book. A joy to read - I hated to see it end. Colorful characters living in the Vermont of old. I wonderful addition to my collection of "Up North" books that are meant to be read while sitting by a wood stove in a northern cabin on a snowy day!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book!, December 12, 2000

By 

Wendresma (Capital Region, NY, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Where the Rivers Flow North (Paperback)

After I found out that former my in-laws knew Howard Mosher personally and my ex-husband had him as a teacher and coach in school and hung out with Howard's kids in high school I HAD to read a book written by him. This is the first book I read by Howard and I can't wait to read more. What a great illustration of Vermont in the early 1900's!