At the Waterline: Stories from the Columbia River

Name: At the Waterline: Stories from the Columbia River
Brand: Findaway Voices
Availability: InStock
Author: Brian K. Friesen
ISBN: 9781518953125

Author: Brian K. Friesen

Narrator: Brian K. Friesen

Unabridged: 9 hr 33 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Author's Republic

Published: 10/01/2017

Categories: Fiction, Coming Of Age, Women, Cultural Fiction, Humorous, Literary Fiction, Indigenous, Psychological, Religious, Romance, Action & Adventure, Contemporary Romance, New Adult, Sea Stories, Military Fiction, Nonfiction, History, Native & Indigenous History, Native & Indigenous Nonfiction, Religion, Christianity, Catholic, Protestant

Synopsis

One windy night on the Willamette River, a young man with romantic notions of a sailing life crashes his boat into a railroad bridge, nearly killing his wife. Divorced, ashamed, and haunted by the tragedy, Chad tries to leave the river and its memories behind, only to be drawn back years later. At a ramshackle marina north of Portland, he lives and works among a motley assortment of houseboat dwellers and liveaboards, each with their own story and their own reasons to distrust or embrace a newcomer who can’t quite commit to being one of them.

There’s Dory and Marge, one a dreamer, the other a purveyor of hot dogs and gossip, necessary glue for a community literally tied together in the current; there’s Barry, the Catholic priest who has lost his faith; Bernice and Bill, a perfect couple on the verge of fracturing; and there’s Jack, who has lived on the river his entire life—before speedboats, before electricity, and before shotguns went out of style as a way of settling disputes.

As the seasons bring changes to the river, Chad and this makeshift community change each other in unexpected ways, learning to love, to trust, and to heal.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Pam

In a way, At the Waterline is a coming of age story. That’s not how it’s billed, but in the end it makes a certain amount of sense to me. The book is an ensemble of stories about the people who live in boats and houseboats along the Columbia River, downstream from Portland. Their lives are separate b......more

Goodreads review by Terence

At The Waterline is a compelling story featuring a likable cast of oddballs who've dropped away from traditional society in favor of the solitude of house boat communities. Debut author Brian K. Friesen clearly writes from experience here, as this floating world reads as incredibly grounded in its P......more

Goodreads review by Benjamin

Friesen's debut novel is laced with a verisimilitude that can only be discovered through experience. In this way, Friesen has an authorial command that guides the reader, much like the river currents that guide his characters, through the often jargon-heavy prose. Chad, like his beloved Arctic Loon,......more

Goodreads review by Sadie

Very few books can pull off a plot that is entirely driven by characters, but this one managed to do it really well. The characters in this book are so outlandish and creative that they keep you constantly guessing and wanting more. I really enjoyed the strong personalities that tie the whole thing......more