True To The Times | North River: A Novel

"North River" by Pete Hamill | North River: A Novel | Pete Hamill

books:


	• North River: A Novel Pete Hamill Little, Brown and Company, 2007 - 352 pages average customer review:based on 42 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

North River a joy from beginning to end

As an avid Pete Hamill fan, I was not disappointed in North River. I put it right up there with Forever and Snow in August. I was lost in the story, and felt a kinship with Dr. Delaney, Carlito, Rose, and Grace. I pictured Molly, and was sad when her remains were found, yet saw a clear path for Rose, which tempered my melancholy. In reading the reviews, I don't remember anyone mentioning the obscure allusion to Cormac O'Connor, the character from Forever. I enjoyed the tiny "cameo" appearance by another Hamill character that remains fondly in my memories.

C. Hays

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True To The Times

North River is not only about the loves of the main character, Dr. Delaney, it is about Pete Hamill's love of New York City. The book follows Delaney from the time he discovers his grandchild on his front step through a series of hard knocks and helping hands. Set during the Depression, Hamill imbues this book with all the sensitivity of people in need and people willing to help.

The center piece of the novel is the evolving relationship between Delaney and Rosa, a woman sent to help him raise his grandchild. As they find each other, the people of the neighborhood show themselves to be as human as the two main characters, complete with all the nuances one would expect from a melting pot of immigrants. At times the plot stutters but it's no bother. The characters carry you through this world that Hamill renders so clearly.

This book is best read in a couple of sittings, preferably in the winter, when you can gaze out the window and see the characters alive and well.

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"North River" by Pete Hamill

This is the best book I have read recently. I have read a lot
of books this past summer to recommend to my Book Club for us
to read and discuss, but most are depressing, uninteresting and
not well written.
Pete Hamill writes so well he gets you into the scene and
the characters and it is hard to put it down. I am going to
suggest to my Book Club that we choose it for our new selection
to read, because I want others to enjoy it as much as I did.

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Really 4.5 -- Great Characters & So Relevant!!

Here is why I really liked this book. 1] Doc Delaney is an amazing character; 2] Actually, most of the characters [the gangsters are almost sraight from The Godfather!] in North River are beautifully rendered [good nuance]; 3] Hamill is in a "New York State of Mind" and I so relate to this!; 4] The Depression Era is expertly drawn and the relevance to today's market is almost prescient; 5] Okay, why not a 5 star review? It drags a bit and is fairly predictable -- although any other ending would have been a disaster. 6] Highly recommended if you are a character-driven reader.

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Understanding another time

This is a well written novel about New York during the depression. The streets, neighborhoods, people and customs of that place are described in intimate detail. The story is a somber tale of loss, heartbreak, and hope. The characters suffer from generations of abandonment, and they reenact the same drama with their children. This is also the story of one courageous person who breaks the pattern.

As a physician, I could understand part of the protagonist's experience. He is exposed to so much pain and suffering that it changes his life. The author describes this in a remarkable way, one that is very accurate.

The writing is skillful, although this is not a page-turner. The pace is slow. There is as much reflection as there is action. Through this novel I came to better understand the constraints on people of that time and place. They risked social oblivion if they fell in love with someone of another class. I believe that it is an accurate portrayal of the social mores of the 1930's. Although I found myself depressed at some points, and considered moving on to other reading, I was ultimately glad that I finished the book. I did not always enjoy the novel while reading it, but enjoyment is only one reason to read. This is the type of book that you think about for a long time, one that changes the way you think about the people that came before us. That was worth the price of admission.

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It is 1934, and New York City is in the icy grip of the Great Depression. With enormous compassion, Dr. James Delaney tends to his hurt, sick, and poor neighbors, who include gangsters, day laborers, prostitutes, and housewives. If they can't pay, he treats them anyway.

But in his own life, Delaney is emotionally numb, haunted by the slaughters of the Great War. His only daughter has left for Mexico, and his wife Molly vanished months before, leaving him to wonder if she is alive or dead. Then, on a snowy New Year's Day, the doctor returns home to find his three-year-old grandson on his doorstep, left by his mother in Delaney's care. Coping with this unexpected arrival, Delaney hires Rose, a tough, decent Sicilian woman with a secret in her past. Slowly, as Rose and the boy begin to care for the good doctor, the numbness in Delaney begins to melt.

Recreating 1930s New York with the vibrancy and rich detail that are his trademarks, Pete Hamill weaves a story of honor, family, and one man's simple courage that no reader will soon forget.

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