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    A Far Piece to Canaan: A Novel of Friendship and Redemption
    Unavailable
    A Far Piece to Canaan: A Novel of Friendship and Redemption
    Unavailable
    A Far Piece to Canaan: A Novel of Friendship and Redemption
    Ebook463 pages7 hours

    A Far Piece to Canaan: A Novel of Friendship and Redemption

    By Sam Halpern

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    A Far Piece to Canaan is a warm and nostalgic novel from an unexpected source: Sam Halpern, whose salty paternal wisdom made Justin Halpern’s Sh*t My Dad Says a phenomenal bestseller.
     
    Inspired by Sam Halpern’s childhood in rural Kentucky, A Far Piece to Canaan tells the story of Samuel Zelinsky, a celebrated but troubled former professor who reluctantly returns after his wife’s death to the Kentucky hills where he lived as a child to reconnect with long-buried memories and make good on a forgotten promise.
     
    A tale of superstition, secrets, and heroism in the postwar South, A Far Piece to Canaan: A Novel of Friendship and Redemption is the surprising and moving debut of a gifted storyteller.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateMay 28, 2013
    ISBN9780062233189
    Unavailable
    A Far Piece to Canaan: A Novel of Friendship and Redemption

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    Reviews for A Far Piece to Canaan

    4/5

    14 ratings5 reviews

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    • 4/5
      A very good read.
    • 5/5
      I read the authors bio and know that he actually lived most of what he wrote. Both my parents lived in eastern ky and also lived hard lives. It really is about family and friends. It is a beautiful book that I enjoyed very much!
    • 4/5
      We meet twelve-year-old Sam Zelinsky, who along with his family- Dad, Mom, and three older siblings- are sharecropping on a farm in Kentucky. Sharecropping is an incredibly tough life, and Halpern's writing really opened up my eyes to a world I did not know well. Not only are the sharecroppers dependent on the weather, like most farmers, they are also subject to the owners of the farms and their sometimes changing whims. The Zelinskys hope to make enough money to buy their own farm in Indiana.Sam's best friend is Fred, whose family is struggling even more so than Sam's family. Fred's father saves every penny he makes to put toward buying mules and equipment, even if it means his family goes without food or decent clothing.I enjoyed watching Sam and Fred's friendship develop. I live with my husband and two sons, and so that world of maleness fascinates me. Much like Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner, it gave me great insight into how boys relate to each other.The book moves back and forth between now and the years on the farm in Kentucky. Sam's beloved wife Nora told him before she died that he needed to go back to Kentucky to look for his friend Fred whom he hasn't seen in 60 years, even though Fred had tried to get in touch a few times over the years.There is some action in the book as someone is savagely butchering livestock. Sam, Fred and two of their friends stumble upon where this crazed man is hiding, but they don't tell anyone because they fear that two of the boys' fathers will beat them for going somewhere they have been forbidden to go.The boys decide to protect each other rather than tell the truth about what they know. Anyone who has dealt with young people has probably run across this. The young mind isn't mature enough to make a reasoned decision. It is more important to be loyal to a friend.When the crazy man burns down a home and tries to kill Sam, they boys are forced to tell what they know. The scenes with the sheriff and the boys and their fathers as they first try to get the boys to tell the truth and then go after the man are crackling with tension.The last few chapters tell Sam's story as he goes back to Kentucky to track down his friend Fred. His journey is moving as he tries to redeem himself. He moved away and left everything and everyone behind, and now he has regrets about not staying in touch.Reading this did make me think about the journey we are on as we travel through life. We make friends at different stages, and this book will encourage you to be grateful for everyone you have loved, and to remember that they played a part in making you who you are.My favorite line in the book is this one from the adult Sam:"Being human is difficult", I said aloud. "Common decency is the greatest quality to which one can aspire and the hardest to practice."Reading Justin's books, I always knew that his dad Sam had a big heart and I am glad to see that he gets to express his voice in this beautiful novel, which I suspect has much in common with Sam's own young years (and not just that he and his protagonist share a name).The only criticism I have is that some of the descriptions of the Kentucky landscape went on a bit too long for me.
    • 5/5
      Samuel, now a retired professor and widower, returns to the home of his youth in search of redemption and the best friend he's ever had. Raised the son of a sharecropper in Kentucky, this story follows Samuel's time in Harper's Corner, Kentucky. As a young boy, Samuel finds himself entrenched in a dangerous mystery that threatens the entire village, while he and his friends wonder whether they may be able to stop it. As a man, Samuel must come to terms with having abandoned his best friend, and with whether or not he could have made a difference.I found this book to be a surprisingly sentimental read. Considering the author is also the originator of such hysterically crass and brutally honest statements as those shared by his son via Sh*t My Dad Says, I am amazed at how sweet and touching this story was, especially when being written by a self-described curmudgeon. The author created a cast of very likable characters. The main character, Samuel Zelinsky, is a sweet boy-- conscientious, respectful and thoughtful. His best friend Fred is likewise a good boy, but shoulders the weight of the world and often has a difficult time managing his depression. But he's a very brave and spirited boy. Likewise I became very fond of their friend Lonnie, who comes from an abusive home and therefore has become tough as nails on the surface (although underneath it all, he is just as sweet as Samuel and Fred).The speech pattern used among the boys can be difficult to adjust to. The characters speak in the dialect of the Kentucky hills, saying things like "wudn't" (wasn't), "hit's" (it is), and "bob warr'll cut ye" (barbed wire will cut you).I have discovered over the last year that I am quite fond of southern literature. There is a richness and depth to the characters that is captivating, and having grown up in the south, a certain familiarity. This book did not disappoint!My final word: This story continually reminded me of Stephen King's "Stand By Me". The friendships that exist amongst a group of boys, the setting, the sense of innocence lost. I love "Stand By Me", so I mean the comparison in the best way possible. Samuel, Fred and Lonnie all became characters that I truly cared about. The storyline kept me guessing, there were lots of other colorful characters on the periphery, and ultimately the story was just plain charming.
    • 4/5
      A Far Piece to Canaan is not my usual reading fare. But I was extremely curious to read it, as Sam Halpern is the father of Justin Halpern - author of Sh*t My Dad Says. Could the same dad with the somewhat foul mouth and no filter really write a book befitting such a bucolic cover? Surprisingly, yes. English Professor Samuel Zelinsky's wife Nora has just died of cancer. Before her death, she made Sam promise to return to the hills of Kentucky where he spent part of his youth. Sam has never really talked about those years, growing up as the son of sharecroppers, but somehow Nora knew he had unfinished business. And Sam honours that promise. As Sam tours through his childhood haunts, the narrative switches back to 1945 and we meet ten year old Sam and his soon to be best friend Fred Cody Mulligan. Halpern does an admirable job in bringing this time and space to life. His descriptive prose bring to life the croak of frogs, the sweetness of an apple and the coolness of a mountain stream. But not everything is idealic - there is something evil lurking around the bottomless Blue Hole. Local superstition says it's the devil, but the boys find evidence that the evil is human. This event is the catalyst for what transpires, shapes and changes the lives of Sam, Fred and their two friends. For me, A Far Piece to Canaan had a very 'Stand By Me' feel to it. We are transported back and forth from past to present as Sam tries to come to terms with his actions in the past and make reparations in the present. About halfway through the book, I wondered about there really being Jewish sharecroppers in Kentucky in the 1940s. It was only as I searched our more about the author that I discovered that this was truly Sam Halpern's life. He was that Jewish sharecropper's kid in Kentucky. (Read the full interview here at Tablet Magazine.) And upon discovering that I looked at the book with a different set of eyes in the second half. For Halpern is writing what he knows, what he lived and what he remembers. "Like every novel, it’s a mixture of fact and fiction. Much of the description of central Kentucky and the life of the sharecroppers are real." It is this 'insider' knowledge that gave the book such a real feel. I enjoyed the character of Sam and his description of day to day life. The supporting cast of characters were just as well drawn. I did have a bit of problem accepting the reason the boys 'won't tell', as well as Sam's relationship with Ben and the need to keep it a secret. Some of the vernacular used was easy to decipher. Hit'll for It will I got, wudn't for would not, but some words I had to guess at. Hun'ney for honey? It is only used by one ten year old boy talking to the other and seemed a bit odd. It seemed a bit hit or miss, with some words that would be easily contracted being spelled out fully such as old (ole) and just (jes'). Minor quibble. For this reader, the best part of the book was set in the past. I found the 'redemption' part of the story in the last few chapters didn't hold my interest as well (I thought it was a bit too saccharine) All in all, an admirable debut. And much different than I expected!