Title: Where You Once Belonged
Author: Kent Haruf
First published January 1, 1990
176 pages, Paperback
ISBN: 9780375708701 (ISBN10: 0375708707)
Rating: 3.92
Overview
Antony Beevor’s The Fall of Berlin 1945 is a haunting account of the Red Army’s vengeance as it swept through the frontiers of the Reich in the final days of World War II. The Wehrmacht and SS brutality ensured that the fire and sword campaign was the most terrifying example of destruction ever known.
The tanks crushed refugee columns under their tracks, while rape, pillage, and mass destruction engulfed the city. The Nazi Party chiefs refused to face defeat and forbade the evacuation of civilians, leading to the massacre of hundreds of thousands of women and children and their eventual death due to freezing temperatures.
Over seven million people fled westwards to escape the Red Army’s terror, and Beevor reconstructs their experiences in this terrible story of pride, stupidity, fanaticism, revenge, and savagery. However, it is also a story of endurance, self-sacrifice, and survival against all odds.
About the Author
Kent Haruf hailed from eastern Colorado and earned his Bachelor of Arts in literature from Nebraska Wesleyan University in 1965. Later, in 1973, he completed his Masters of Fine Arts from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop at the University of Iowa.
He taught English in Turkey with the Peace Corps for two years, and his diverse work experience includes working on a chicken farm in Colorado, a construction site in Wyoming, a rehabilitation hospital in Colorado, a hospital in Arizona, a library in Iowa, an alternative high school in Wisconsin, and universities in Nebraska and Illinois.
Haruf is a celebrated author, having won numerous awards for his works such as Plainsong, which received the Mountains and Plains Booksellers Award, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, the Maria Thomas Award in Fiction, and The New Yorker Book Award. Plainsong was also a finalist for the 1999 National Book Award.
His novel, Eventide, received a Whiting Foundation Award and a special citation from the Pen/Hemingway Foundation. In 2006, Haruf was awarded the Dos Passos Prize for Literature.
All of Haruf’s novels are set in the fictitious town of Holt, Colorado, which is based on Yuma, Colorado, where Haruf lived in the 1980s.
Haruf lived with his wife, Cathy, and their three daughters in Salida, Colorado, until his death from cancer on November 30, 2014.
Editoral Review
Kent Haruf’s Where You Once Belonged is a novel published in 1990 that primarily revolves around the themes of betrayal, forgiveness, and redemption. Haruf, who passed away in 2014, was an American novelist and author of notable novels such as Plainsong, Eventide, and Benediction.
This book is set in the fictional town of Holt, Colorado that Haruf frequently wrote about in many of his books. The novel tells the story of Jack Burdette, who was a high school football hero before leaving the town to make a fortune.
Years later, he returns to Holt to find the town’s residents particularly his former lover, the now-married Linda less than welcoming. Jack finds that his old glory days have long since passed, and he is now an outsider in his former home.
Jacks arrival sets off a chain of events that leads to a fatal accident in which Jack is the prime suspect. Haruf’s writing style is simple, direct, and clean, which makes the novel an easy read.
The book’s pace is slow, with minimal dialogue, allowing for a deep emotional connection with the characters. The calm and measured narrative voice invites the reader into the tales quiet world and draws them in despite the lack of action or intricate plotting.
An interesting aspect of the book is the way Haruf uses the small-town backdrop as an effective tool to magnify the novel’s central themes. Through the townspeoples reaction to Jack’s return and the ensuing events, the book explores the weight of rumors, small-town social hierarchies, and the human cost of not fitting in.
With Where You Once Belonged, Haruf manages to craft a poignant and thought-provoking story with relatable characters that leave a lasting impression. The novel does not attempt to provide easy answers to complex problems, and Haruf’s use of reticence is admirable, allowing the story to unfold naturally without forced sentimentality.
While there are no major flaws in the book, it may not be appropriate for those seeking a fast-paced, action-packed read. The novel and its characters are subtle and require the readers patience to fully appreciate.
Finally, for those looking for a deeply moving and thought-provoking novel, Where You Once Belonged is a must-read that deserves a score of 4.5 out of 5. Haruf’s impressive literary prowess shines throughout the book, and both his writing style and story themes stand the test of time, worthy of reading even more than thirty years after its publication.
