This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger

 Odie and his brother, Albert, are orphans.  They are not native Americans, but they have lived at an Indian school since they were 6 and 10.  It is 1932, and now Odie is 12 and Albert is 16.  Albert is obedient and diligent, but Odie makes all the trouble he can for the school's head mistress, Mrs Brickman, whom they call the Black Witch. The school is harsh. The kids are underfed, and overworked.  The only thing that makes it bearable for Odie is a couple of compassionate teachers who help shield him from the worst of Mrs Brickman's wrath.  Then one day tragedy strikes, and Odie is forced to flee the school.  Albert and their friends, Mose and Emmy flee with him.  They take a canoe and start down the river that will lead them to the Mississippi, St. Louis, and the only family Odie and Albert have left. Along the way the meet a wide array of people doing their best to survive at the height of the Great Depression,
and learn a lot about life, faith and love.

One of my co-workers who was an English major recommended this book to me because she loved the writing style.  It is an interesting mix of Huckleberry Finn, Grapes of Wrath, and Oliver Twist. The writing is very literary and the mood swings from melancholy to hopeful throughout the narrative. I didn't know if I was going to be able to handle a book like this this week because I was stressed by a big project at work,  but I ended up really enjoying it just because it was so well written. All the characters are complicated and fully drawn.  Odie is intelligent, but authentically only 12 years old. The others are also very believable characters, each with their demons to fight, and their battles to win.   Even though the characters are teens, the reader should beware that there are adult elements.  There is no description of sexual or physical abuse, but there are suggestions of it. Still, I could see this being really popular with book groups.  I could even see a high school student with an affection for the classics really liking it. (2020, 464 p)