This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger. Atria Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, 2019. Adult historical fiction.When young Odie O'Banion, his brother Albert, his friend Mose, and little Emmy leave their Lincoln Indian Training School in 1932 Minnesota, they take a canoe down the Mississippi River. The first about a hundred pages have set up their relationships, their struggles, and what leads them to take such drastic measures. This is a quest book with adventure, friendship, love, and the unexpected. Kruger writes beautiful descriptions of land AND people. He places the reader right in the middle of these children and makes us root for them. If you have not read any of Krueger's other works, treat yourself to Ordinary Grace, too.
