Reminiscent of Kent Haruf and Cormac McCarthy, Bruce Machart’s debut novel is a dark family saga set in the American Southwest.
On a moonless Texas night in 1895, an ambitious young landowner suffers the loss of “the only woman he’s ever been fond of” when his wife dies during childbirth with the couple’s fourth son, Karel. The boy is forever haunted by thoughts of the mother he never knew, by the bloodshot blame in his father’s eyes, and permanently marked by the yoke he and his brothers are forced to wear to plow the family fields. From an early age, Karel proves so talented on horseback that his father enlists him to ride in acreage-staked horseraces against his neighbors. In the winter of 1910, Karel rides in the ultimate high-stakes race against a powerful Spanish patriarch and his alluring daughters: hanging in the balance are his father’s fortune, his brothers' futures, and his own fate.
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On a moonless Texas night in 1895, an ambitious young landowner suffers the loss of "the only woman he's ever been fond of" when his wife dies during childbirth with the couple's fourth boy, Karel. From an early age Karel proves so talented on horseback that his father enlists him to ride in acreage-staked horseraces against his neighbors. But Karel is forever haunted by thoughts of the mother he never knew, by the bloodshot blame in his father's eyes, and permanently marked by the yoke he and his brothers are forced to wear to plow the family fields. Confident only in the saddle, Karel is certain that the horse "wants the whip the same way he wants his pop's strap . . . the closest he ever gets to his father's touch." In the winter of 1910, Karel rides in the ultimate high-stakes race against a powerful Spanish patriarch and his alluring daughters. Hanging in the balance are his father's fortune, his brother's futures, and his own fate. Fourteen years later, with the stake of the race still driven hard between him and his brothers, Karel is finally forced to dress the wounds of his past and to salvage the tattered fabric of his family.
Reminiscent of Kent Haruf's portrayals of hope amidst human heartbreak and Cormac McCarthy's finely hewn evocations of the American Southwest, Bruce Machart's striking debut is as well wrought as it is riveting. It compels us to consider the inescapable connections between sons and their mothers, between landscape and family, and between remembrance and redemption.
Amazon Exclusive: Hannah Tinti Reviews The Wake of Forgiveness
Hannah Tinti is the author of The Good Thief and Animal Crackers. Read her guest review of The Wake of Forgiveness:
I’ve been a fan of Bruce Machart’s work since 2004, when I read his story "What You’re Walking Around Without" for consideration at One Story magazine. His writing bowled me over with its skill, gripping narrative and pure emotion. At the time, Bruce said he was working on a novel. It took six years to get here, but boy was it worth the wait.
In The Wake of Forgiveness, Bruce Machart tells a story that stretches wide across the Texas landscape. Set at the turn of the century, it follows Karel and his three brothers, whose father drives them hard, yoking his sons as he plows the fields until they all carry a permanent mark on their shoulders. But their father is also a gambler, and he drops his fortune on a high-stakes horse race with Karel as rider. This moonlit race changes their lives forever, especially Karel’s, as he loses not only his father and brothers but his first love, a dark Spanish beauty. Now, fourteen years later, he is forced to bridge the divide with his brothers that opened on that fateful night. This is the gritty world of horses and men, of fathers and sons. Bruce Machart writes with a richness that completely unfolds time and place, leaving behind its own beautiful wake of remembrance, inheritance, and the unbreakable bonds of family.
Amazon Exclusive: Discussion Questions for Wake of Forgiveness
On a moonless Texas night in 1895, an ambitious young landowner suffers the loss of “the only woman he’s ever been fond of” when his wife dies while giving birth to the couple’s fourth boy, Karel. From an early age, Karel proves so talented on horseback that his father enlists him to ride in acreage-staked races against his neighbors. But Karel is forever haunted by thoughts of the mother he never knew and the bloodshot blame in his father’s eyes, and permanently marked by the yoke he and his brothers are forced to wear to plow the family fields. Confident only in the saddle, Karel is certain that the horse “wants the whip the same way he wants his pop’s strap . . . the closest he ever gets to his father’s touch.”
In the winter of 1910, Karel rides in the ultimate high-stakes race against a powerful Spanish patriarch and his alluring daughters. Hanging in the balance are his father’s fortune, his brother’s futures, and his own fate. Fourteen years later, with the stake of the race still driven hard between him and his brothers, Karel is finally forced to dress the wounds of his past and salvage the tattered fabric of his family.
Reminiscent of Kent Haruf’s portrayals of hope amidst human heartbreak and Cormac McCarthy’s finely hewn evocations of the American Southwest, Bruce Machart’s striking debut is as well wrought as it is riveting. It compels us to consider the inescapable connections between sons and their mothers, between landscape and family, and between remembrance and redemption.
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