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Out There
Out There is the story of a young Army veteran (Jefferson Long Soldier) who returns home safely to New Mexico after two tours of duty in Iraq convinced that the book he carried with him (One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez) saved his life. But when he can't find a way to escape the dark memories of war, he borrows his cousin's motorcycle and rides south across the border to Mexico in search of the famous writer behind the magic of the life-saving classic novel. The adventure that follows is a heart-warming journey of healing and self-discovery.
Humorous, redemptive and awash in magic realism, Out There is a beautiful homage to Gabriel García Márquez and a celebration of books that have a made a difference in our lives.
Humorous, redemptive and awash in magic realism, Out There is a beautiful homage to Gabriel García Márquez and a celebration of books that have a made a difference in our lives.
286 pages, Paperback
First published April 21, 2014
11 people are currently reading
660 people want to read
About the author
Sarah Stark
3 books9 followersSarah Stark currently teaches literature and creative writing at the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) in Santa Fe, New Mexico. She grew up in the Austin, Texas area among readers and teachers and football enthusiasts. After graduating cum laude with a B.A. in Foreign Service from Baylor University, she earned an M.A. in Foreign Affairs from the University of Virginia. As a foreign policy analyst in Washington, D.C., she wrote about international security issues, including nuclear nonproliferation and peacekeeping. For the last 14 years Sarah has made her home in Santa Fe, New Mexico. She is happily married and the mother of four wonderful children.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
December 7, 2019
3.5/4 After reading the classic New Mexico text by N. Scott Momaday, House Made of Dawn, it was interesting to read a more modern story set in the same area. What really resonated with me was the idea that books have power to transform and "save" people's lives, as Gabriel Garcia Marquez' novel 100 Years of Solitude did for the protagonist in this novel.
Jefferson Long Solider, returns from two years serving in Iraq, convinced that the book he never quite connected with in high school but the one he strapped it to his chest and carried with him through the war, saved his life. Drifting and floundering after he returns from his tour of duty, the plan to ride his motorbike through the New Mexican landscape to get to Marquez' hometown, meet him, and tell him how much his book meant to him, gives him purpose and hope. And he experiences moments and people who impact him along his journey, and help him return to his grandmother and cousin who believe in and support him through his struggles.
I enjoyed the story and the character. I LOVED the premise about books. I got a little tired of ALL the focus being on Marquez novel, with tons of quotes and Jefferson's chants about them--lots of focus on these areas and it lost a little of its lustre. Maybe not having read One Hundred Years of Solitude (gasp) made a difference here, and though I could understand the context and meaning of the quotes/chants, maybe I would've been more tolerant of and excited about that part of it. And I'm not just running to the bookstore to buy Marquez' book on the basis of Stark's story. So, that says something.
Still, it was a worthwhile read and I did care about the main character and what happened to him. And there were genuine moments in the story and the writing that moved me.
Jefferson Long Solider, returns from two years serving in Iraq, convinced that the book he never quite connected with in high school but the one he strapped it to his chest and carried with him through the war, saved his life. Drifting and floundering after he returns from his tour of duty, the plan to ride his motorbike through the New Mexican landscape to get to Marquez' hometown, meet him, and tell him how much his book meant to him, gives him purpose and hope. And he experiences moments and people who impact him along his journey, and help him return to his grandmother and cousin who believe in and support him through his struggles.
I enjoyed the story and the character. I LOVED the premise about books. I got a little tired of ALL the focus being on Marquez novel, with tons of quotes and Jefferson's chants about them--lots of focus on these areas and it lost a little of its lustre. Maybe not having read One Hundred Years of Solitude (gasp) made a difference here, and though I could understand the context and meaning of the quotes/chants, maybe I would've been more tolerant of and excited about that part of it. And I'm not just running to the bookstore to buy Marquez' book on the basis of Stark's story. So, that says something.
Still, it was a worthwhile read and I did care about the main character and what happened to him. And there were genuine moments in the story and the writing that moved me.
August 17, 2017
Jefferson Long Soldier has just returned home to New Mexico from his third Iraq tour. Suffering from PTSD, he is convinced that the classic Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel, One Hundred Years of Solitude saved his life during his time "out there." As Jefferson struggles to find meaning in his life, he decides to seek out the genius whose writing saved him. He borrows his cousin's motorcycle and heads to Mexico City to seek out Marquez.
Out There is such beautiful novel. It follows a journey a self-discovery, while at the same time paying homage to the life-changing gift of books in our life. I found it engaging, moving and enjoyed the elements of Marquez's writing that the author chose to infuse in this novel.
Out There is such beautiful novel. It follows a journey a self-discovery, while at the same time paying homage to the life-changing gift of books in our life. I found it engaging, moving and enjoyed the elements of Marquez's writing that the author chose to infuse in this novel.
September 8, 2014
I enjoyed this book. When it was billed as a new Catcher in the Rye, I knew I had to read it. I am not sure I agree with that assessment, although I do think it is an excellent coming-of-age, find-yourself-out-there story. I think it is timely in that the main character is a war veteran; for my generation, that is a pain we all have to bear, combat or not, so that made the character more real and his struggles more intense and emotional for me. No spoilers here – I enjoyed the story, the characters, and the way the book was written. It was easy to read, and it kept my attention. As long as you aren’t disturbed by reading about things related to war and what war can do to a person, I definitely recommend this book. As a psychologist, I personally would not recommend this to someone that has been in combat, especially if they were experiencing active PTSD symptoms, as some of the story could hit too close to home. And yes, I found the writing to be that intense at times.
November 30, 2021
Cool novel about how Gabriel Garcia Marquez's One Hundred Years Of Solitude saves a young man's life during his stint in the Iraq war. Great setup, huh? Especially if, like me, GGM's book is one of your favorites. Unlike GGM's book, this one is light on the war part (thank goodness), and never really unreal enough to be considered hardcore magical realism (or at least not as much as 100 Years). Stark gives us a standard "outsider" type story, but does a great job deviating from the familiar tropes just enough to make it interesting, but not so much as to make us uncomfortable or unhappy with how it all unfolds. Several times I was sure Stark was going to follow a well-trod literary path only to be pleasantly surprised by her head fake. Even the ending was subtly offbeat and just right.
One of Stark's deviations that I just couldn't seem to accept/absorb was the simple fact that the main character was not a slobby, overweight introvert. With a name like Jefferson Long Soldier, I couldn't help but picture Oscar Wao or Ignatius J. Reilly or one of the many other serious, clueless geeks that are usually the main characters of this style of fiction. I was surprised anew each time Stark would mention that Jefferson was in decent shape or that a girl actually found him attractive. It just goes to show how trained we are as readers -- even now, when I think back on this book, I picture Oscar Woa instead of Jefferson . Other than that one oddity (and it is probably more my fault than Stark's), this novel went down just right. I can confidently recommend Out There, especially for GGM fans.
One of Stark's deviations that I just couldn't seem to accept/absorb was the simple fact that the main character was not a slobby, overweight introvert. With a name like Jefferson Long Soldier, I couldn't help but picture Oscar Wao or Ignatius J. Reilly or one of the many other serious, clueless geeks that are usually the main characters of this style of fiction. I was surprised anew each time Stark would mention that Jefferson was in decent shape or that a girl actually found him attractive. It just goes to show how trained we are as readers -- even now, when I think back on this book, I picture Oscar Woa instead of Jefferson . Other than that one oddity (and it is probably more my fault than Stark's), this novel went down just right. I can confidently recommend Out There, especially for GGM fans.
January 15, 2016
Out There by Sarah Stark is an absolutely beautifully written story. The reader follows Jefferson Long Soldier, home from Iraq as he attempts to return to a life of normalcy. Yet, when life outside of war becomes too much, Jefferson sets out on a journey through Mexico in hopes of finding the author of the book he believes saved his life.
Out There, is just what writing should be. Not my normal read, I found Out There to be writing at its absolute best. Poetic, descriptive and at times haunting Stark gives the reader so much with her use of words, symbolism and detail. The beginning of the story starts out slow and the writing style was an adjustment for me personally. At times it is quick paced and the back and forth between past and present did get confusing for a second, but it never ever took away from the story and I was able to catch on very quickly.
I found Jefferson’s journey heartbreaking, yet so inspiring. Home from Iraq and unable to adjust gives the reader an element of what so many of our men and women face when home from war. You can’t help but feel completely torn for them. They not only risk their lives, but so many risk their minds, and return home different people that even doctors push to the side and just write off as another veteran, like in Jefferson’s situation. His journey to locate Gabriel Garcia Marquez is inspiring. While on the road there are these moments that Jefferson is faced with, and each one helps in his healing one by one. Human connection, memories, finding light in the darkest moments, discovering our true selves these moments and situations define us. These instances make us human and in moments like these Jefferson found his healing and it was so beautiful to read both the story and the author’s actual words. Everything throughout Jefferson’s journey starts to tie together and in these moments Jefferson begins to learn about himself and his ability to heal and find purpose in his life. It’s the experiences we face in life that make us who were are. Sarah Stark’s Out There was completely captivating and unforgettable.
May 31, 2014
I received this book from a Goodreads first reads giveaway. I entered knowing that this is not the typical book that I would choose to read; I use my goodreads account not only to record the books I have read and review them, but to explore authors and genres.
The writing style in this book is plain, to the point, and very seldom did I come across a word I did not know. Sarah Stark has a way of giving just enough information to describe a person or a place so that I can envision it in my head, but leaving just the right amount to my imagination. A great balance on descriptive adjectives and imaginative influence.
To state it again, this is not normally the type of novel I would read. If I had to describe this book in one word, it would be "dry". I did find myself compelled to know the end for Jefferson Long Soldier, but the lack of climax and plot left the book a little stale, in my opinion.
On the other hand, regardless of my personal preference of genre, this book was an incredible insight into what might be the struggle of a soldier who has made their way back home, and the interpersonal obstacles of adjusting to "normal life". I felt a lot of repetitiveness within the book, but I would believe that is because of the viewpoint of Jefferson, and what he is going through. Although, I do have to say, that this book gave me an uncomfortable feeling about Jefferson, an awkwardness; I believe this was intended by Stark, because of not only what Jefferson was feeling inside, but how others also perceived him.
Overall, I gave three stars because I feel that the feeling the author gave me while reading about Jefferson was executed perfectly. What was lacking in plot and climax was made up for in my own personal feelings about the characters. This, in my opinion, is very important.
Thank you Sarah Stark and Goodreads for giving me the chance to read "Out There". I would like to read more from Sarah Stark in the future!
The writing style in this book is plain, to the point, and very seldom did I come across a word I did not know. Sarah Stark has a way of giving just enough information to describe a person or a place so that I can envision it in my head, but leaving just the right amount to my imagination. A great balance on descriptive adjectives and imaginative influence.
To state it again, this is not normally the type of novel I would read. If I had to describe this book in one word, it would be "dry". I did find myself compelled to know the end for Jefferson Long Soldier, but the lack of climax and plot left the book a little stale, in my opinion.
On the other hand, regardless of my personal preference of genre, this book was an incredible insight into what might be the struggle of a soldier who has made their way back home, and the interpersonal obstacles of adjusting to "normal life". I felt a lot of repetitiveness within the book, but I would believe that is because of the viewpoint of Jefferson, and what he is going through. Although, I do have to say, that this book gave me an uncomfortable feeling about Jefferson, an awkwardness; I believe this was intended by Stark, because of not only what Jefferson was feeling inside, but how others also perceived him.
Overall, I gave three stars because I feel that the feeling the author gave me while reading about Jefferson was executed perfectly. What was lacking in plot and climax was made up for in my own personal feelings about the characters. This, in my opinion, is very important.
Thank you Sarah Stark and Goodreads for giving me the chance to read "Out There". I would like to read more from Sarah Stark in the future!
August 22, 2014
B+ (Four Stars)
This was a touching, and interesting story. I think that the author definitely has a way with words, because the book has a poetic feeling to it, outside of your general fiction. This style of writing is not for everyone, because it’s not going to attract you the same as a book full of action. This story takes place in the mind and heart of a character struggling to come to terms with what life really is, and how you move forward when you come back from the war. He survives a rough time, and comes home struggling with PTSD and some other issues, and he needs to find his way in life. I think many readers can relate to having an author or a book that really affected you strongly in your life. Trying to meet the author, connect with them, and thank them. That’s the root of this book. The character really struggles, and uses the focus of meeting the author to really allow him to have a safety blanket in a way to venture out in the world. Overall, I really enjoyed reading this story. It touched me. If you’re interested in a really human story, something unique to the struggle that we face while living. This is a perfect book for that. There’s not action and adventure, but there’s heart and soul, and a lot of quality writing.
*I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This was a touching, and interesting story. I think that the author definitely has a way with words, because the book has a poetic feeling to it, outside of your general fiction. This style of writing is not for everyone, because it’s not going to attract you the same as a book full of action. This story takes place in the mind and heart of a character struggling to come to terms with what life really is, and how you move forward when you come back from the war. He survives a rough time, and comes home struggling with PTSD and some other issues, and he needs to find his way in life. I think many readers can relate to having an author or a book that really affected you strongly in your life. Trying to meet the author, connect with them, and thank them. That’s the root of this book. The character really struggles, and uses the focus of meeting the author to really allow him to have a safety blanket in a way to venture out in the world. Overall, I really enjoyed reading this story. It touched me. If you’re interested in a really human story, something unique to the struggle that we face while living. This is a perfect book for that. There’s not action and adventure, but there’s heart and soul, and a lot of quality writing.
*I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
February 25, 2016
I really found this book to be quite amazing, such a creative story and one that is filled not only with painful memories that the main character Jefferson Long Soldier experiences during his tours in Iraq, but it is also about the Book One Hundred Years of Solitude, which he feels saved him during those tough times. Jefferson a half Lakota,(Native American) half Mexican American from Santa Fe, comes home after his time at war and cannot seem to get back to a normal life. His obsession with Gabriel Garcia Marques, or GGM as he referred to him, was a big source of comfort to him during and after his tour in Iraq. He would find a passage in the book that seemed to relate to whatever he was going through. He decides to ride a motorcycle to Mexico City where he heard that GGM lived, so that he could thank him for writing the story that saved him.
On his journey he finds not only possibilities, hope, but has many of his needs met, all on his way to healing.
I will not go into details, as I think one should experience and interpret, this story for themselves.
On his journey he finds not only possibilities, hope, but has many of his needs met, all on his way to healing.
I will not go into details, as I think one should experience and interpret, this story for themselves.
May 18, 2016
Out There: A Novel by Sarah Stark
"Out There is the story of a young Army veteran (Jefferson Long Soldier) who returns home safely to New Mexico after two tours of duty in Iraq convinced that the book he carried with him (One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez) saved his life. But when he can't find a way to escape the dark memories of war, he borrows his cousin's motorcycle and rides south across the border to Mexico in search of the famous writer behind the magic of the life-saving classic novel. The adventure that follows is a heart-warming journey of healing and self-discovery.
Humorous, redemptive and awash in magic realism, Out There is a beautiful homage to Gabriel García Márquez and a celebration of books that have a made a difference in our lives. It is being called The Catcher in the Rye of the Iraq/Afghan War." Short read but powerful. . . may not be for everyone but I loved it.
"Out There is the story of a young Army veteran (Jefferson Long Soldier) who returns home safely to New Mexico after two tours of duty in Iraq convinced that the book he carried with him (One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez) saved his life. But when he can't find a way to escape the dark memories of war, he borrows his cousin's motorcycle and rides south across the border to Mexico in search of the famous writer behind the magic of the life-saving classic novel. The adventure that follows is a heart-warming journey of healing and self-discovery.
Humorous, redemptive and awash in magic realism, Out There is a beautiful homage to Gabriel García Márquez and a celebration of books that have a made a difference in our lives. It is being called The Catcher in the Rye of the Iraq/Afghan War." Short read but powerful. . . may not be for everyone but I loved it.
August 13, 2016
I won't talk about the plot or the theme of this novel. What I want to say is that this is one of those rare stories that mean something. It's a story that takes the reader on a beautiful journey, one that when they reach the end they are different than when they started, changed somehow.
If you want to read a story that is just a story, go find something else. But if you want to read something that matters, this is your book.
Really an honor to read this and time so richly spent.
*FTC Disclosure: I received this book free through the Goodreads Giveaways. The opinions in this review are my own.
If you want to read a story that is just a story, go find something else. But if you want to read something that matters, this is your book.
Really an honor to read this and time so richly spent.
*FTC Disclosure: I received this book free through the Goodreads Giveaways. The opinions in this review are my own.
June 18, 2014
This book provides a great insight to what so many of our young men and women are going through in the aftermath of war. Sara provides clear, descriptive writing that allows you into the life of someone who might not otherwise let you in, and take a ride on the road to recovery and the struggles that come with that territory. Thank you for the opportunity at a first look Sara!
October 8, 2014
"A day without sad tears was a day worth journeying for." Loved the resilience of the war-damaged protagonist as well as the beautiful prose given to us by Sarah Stark.
April 14, 2020
Reading a novel about a (still so young) Native American man returning to New Mexico after two tours in Iraq is an excellent choice for pandemic reading. To be able to experience his PTSD from within his own pain is both a distraction and a healing journey. I had the opportunity to be in Santa Fe in January and was recommended this book. I had it by the bedside until in March as we begin social distancing in Seattle the time was right. I will definitely be passing along this book because it deserves more attention and provides a voice that is remarkably true, and redemptive.
October 23, 2017
This is a great little offshoot story to One Hundred Years of Solitude, sometimes tribute to it and sometimes commentary on how specific works move people in unexpected ways. There is that feeling of magical realism, fully believable in a modern context.
October 18, 2022
I almost immediately regretted picking up this book, but luckily the second half was better than the first. Considering the build-up to the ending, I was impressed when the conclusion did not disappoint.
December 4, 2014
Note: I wrote this for the Inlandia Institute blog (which is published on the Press-Enterprise newspaper website) and as an article for the Press-Enterprise book section last Sunday. I’m reposting here because I hope folks will enjoy this novel from an independent publisher.
While this weekend is the official beginning of the season of hysterical consumerism, it is also the dawn of the season of thanks. We’ve just crossed the threshold—Thanksgiving—and will continue in our journey of gratitude through the new year, when loved ones and the less fortunate move us to act on our better impulses.
Those of us who are ‘bookies’ have another group to add to our gratitude list. Writers. Ask most avid readers, and they’ll tell you that books have saved their lives. They aren’t speaking metaphorically. Through the power of others’ words, readers learn first to live, and then to tell, their own stories.
This symbiotic relationship between readers and writers has been detailed in several recent young adult and adult bestsellers. The most popular recent novel in which a reader seeks a writer is The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. So pervasive are the book and the movie that I probably don’t need a spoiler alert when I say that that journey doesn’t go as planned. And yet what a transformational journey it is. Up and coming author Rainbow Rowell does a brilliant job of taking her protagonist on the journey from reader to copycat writer and finally, to a young woman telling her own story in Fangirl. Ruth Ozeki transcends space and time in A Tale for the Time Being to bring together an adolescent diarist from Japan and an author living on a remote island off of British Columbia when the girl’s journal, housed in a Hello Kitty lunchbox, washes up on the author’s shore.
This season, in an act of gratitude for writers who toil on worthy but lesser-known projects, why not make a promise to dig deeper and make a connection to authors unknown to you? As a starter, I’m recommending Out There by Sarah Stark, published this spring by the independent Leaf Storm Press.
Out There is the story of Jefferson Long Soldier, just home from two tours in the Iraq War. Wearing the high-top sneakers he’s beaded and a headband he’s finger-crocheted from plastic sandwich bags, he nervously walks on his hands in the Albuquerque International Sunport to engender the courage it will take to cross the “security barrier, to the free world, to Esco and Cousin Nigel and home.” Jefferson senses that there are “snipers in the airport, explosive tumbleweeds on the highway, insurgents in stolen minivans, undercover extremists buying lattes in front of him and single mothers wired for explosives behind.” Yes, his war experience has left him with PTSD, but he has a plan for getting better. He knows that reading One Hundred Years of Solitude throughout his service has saved him. He still has the novel strapped to his chest with an Ace bandage, and many of its words seared into his brain, words that he has recited to fellow soldiers, that he reviewed whenever someone he knew—or had just met—died.
Since One Hundred Years of Solitude has saved Jefferson, he knows that he must find its author, Nobel Prize winner Gabriel Garcia Marquez—GGM as Jefferson thinks of him—and ask him the big question, Why? He knows GGM will understand all that he has been through because, upon returning from war, the character Colonel Aureliano Buendía is asked where he has been. He replies, “‘Out there,’ an incomprehensible faraway place. As in, You cannot understand where I have been.”
In taking the road trip from Santa Fe, New Mexico to Mexico City by motorcycle, Jefferson doesn’t know if he will achieve his goal. Garcia Marquez is very sick with cancer and a recluse. Jefferson is not sure where he lives. Yet, as we know, the journey itself is often the destination. The danger, beauty and transcendence of the crossing are illuminated with poetic language. Jefferson experiences both people and events as magically real and otherworldly as GGM himself would have enjoyed. And Jefferson will find what he seeks—that “large, unidentified piece of his spirit” that had gone missing, had remained behind in the war.
Jefferson’s reunification with his deeper being is brought about by his ability to take the language of GGM, which “had been a blanket of comfort ever since the night Ramon from Las Cruces was shot in the throat, two feet from Jefferson,” and transform it. He moves from chanting the novel’s lines as a form of eulogy to altering and rearranging those lines until he has created a paean to life and the living.
While most of us have the good fortune not to have gone to war, we have, in other senses, been ‘out there.’ Writers have brought us back with the right words at the right time—words that we inhabit as they inhabit us, until finally, we speak our own language. That’s worth being grateful for.
While this weekend is the official beginning of the season of hysterical consumerism, it is also the dawn of the season of thanks. We’ve just crossed the threshold—Thanksgiving—and will continue in our journey of gratitude through the new year, when loved ones and the less fortunate move us to act on our better impulses.
Those of us who are ‘bookies’ have another group to add to our gratitude list. Writers. Ask most avid readers, and they’ll tell you that books have saved their lives. They aren’t speaking metaphorically. Through the power of others’ words, readers learn first to live, and then to tell, their own stories.
This symbiotic relationship between readers and writers has been detailed in several recent young adult and adult bestsellers. The most popular recent novel in which a reader seeks a writer is The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. So pervasive are the book and the movie that I probably don’t need a spoiler alert when I say that that journey doesn’t go as planned. And yet what a transformational journey it is. Up and coming author Rainbow Rowell does a brilliant job of taking her protagonist on the journey from reader to copycat writer and finally, to a young woman telling her own story in Fangirl. Ruth Ozeki transcends space and time in A Tale for the Time Being to bring together an adolescent diarist from Japan and an author living on a remote island off of British Columbia when the girl’s journal, housed in a Hello Kitty lunchbox, washes up on the author’s shore.
This season, in an act of gratitude for writers who toil on worthy but lesser-known projects, why not make a promise to dig deeper and make a connection to authors unknown to you? As a starter, I’m recommending Out There by Sarah Stark, published this spring by the independent Leaf Storm Press.
Out There is the story of Jefferson Long Soldier, just home from two tours in the Iraq War. Wearing the high-top sneakers he’s beaded and a headband he’s finger-crocheted from plastic sandwich bags, he nervously walks on his hands in the Albuquerque International Sunport to engender the courage it will take to cross the “security barrier, to the free world, to Esco and Cousin Nigel and home.” Jefferson senses that there are “snipers in the airport, explosive tumbleweeds on the highway, insurgents in stolen minivans, undercover extremists buying lattes in front of him and single mothers wired for explosives behind.” Yes, his war experience has left him with PTSD, but he has a plan for getting better. He knows that reading One Hundred Years of Solitude throughout his service has saved him. He still has the novel strapped to his chest with an Ace bandage, and many of its words seared into his brain, words that he has recited to fellow soldiers, that he reviewed whenever someone he knew—or had just met—died.
Since One Hundred Years of Solitude has saved Jefferson, he knows that he must find its author, Nobel Prize winner Gabriel Garcia Marquez—GGM as Jefferson thinks of him—and ask him the big question, Why? He knows GGM will understand all that he has been through because, upon returning from war, the character Colonel Aureliano Buendía is asked where he has been. He replies, “‘Out there,’ an incomprehensible faraway place. As in, You cannot understand where I have been.”
In taking the road trip from Santa Fe, New Mexico to Mexico City by motorcycle, Jefferson doesn’t know if he will achieve his goal. Garcia Marquez is very sick with cancer and a recluse. Jefferson is not sure where he lives. Yet, as we know, the journey itself is often the destination. The danger, beauty and transcendence of the crossing are illuminated with poetic language. Jefferson experiences both people and events as magically real and otherworldly as GGM himself would have enjoyed. And Jefferson will find what he seeks—that “large, unidentified piece of his spirit” that had gone missing, had remained behind in the war.
Jefferson’s reunification with his deeper being is brought about by his ability to take the language of GGM, which “had been a blanket of comfort ever since the night Ramon from Las Cruces was shot in the throat, two feet from Jefferson,” and transform it. He moves from chanting the novel’s lines as a form of eulogy to altering and rearranging those lines until he has created a paean to life and the living.
While most of us have the good fortune not to have gone to war, we have, in other senses, been ‘out there.’ Writers have brought us back with the right words at the right time—words that we inhabit as they inhabit us, until finally, we speak our own language. That’s worth being grateful for.
October 19, 2015
DISCLAIMER: I have not read One Hundred Years of Solitude, and am not a fan of García Márquez (I read Love in the Time of Cholera, and I was bored the whole way through), so I fully appreciate that this book may hold more meaning for someone who shares Jefferson's love of this particular writer.
I was drawn to this book because it's essentially a story of the transforming and healing powers of literature, and that appeals to me. It's not the kind of story I normally read, and I have no close personal experience with war (no near family members or friends who have fought in them), and maybe precisely therefore I thought it might make an interesting change.
And it did. I did enjoy the book, the story of Jefferson's journey to heal, his love of One Hundred Years, his experience of being at war. It's something I can not easily imagine, but the descriptions ring true. How absurd it must be to come back to a "normal life" after being faced with death, or causing death on a daily basis.
I think Sarah Stark writes very well, and there are some beautiful and poetic passages in here. I'd recommend it to someone who loves poetry, someone who loves books (perhaps García Márquez in particular), someone who is curious about what it's like to come back from a war zone.
For me it reaches 3 stars because I found it a bit repetitive and a bit tedious at times, though it's just personal preference - it's a good book.
Also, through no fault of Ms. Stark's I'm sure, the Kindle edition does not display time left in chapter, only time left in book. I find this inconvenient as I like to know if I can finish a chapter during my lunch break or before my train arrives at the station.
I was drawn to this book because it's essentially a story of the transforming and healing powers of literature, and that appeals to me. It's not the kind of story I normally read, and I have no close personal experience with war (no near family members or friends who have fought in them), and maybe precisely therefore I thought it might make an interesting change.
And it did. I did enjoy the book, the story of Jefferson's journey to heal, his love of One Hundred Years, his experience of being at war. It's something I can not easily imagine, but the descriptions ring true. How absurd it must be to come back to a "normal life" after being faced with death, or causing death on a daily basis.
I think Sarah Stark writes very well, and there are some beautiful and poetic passages in here. I'd recommend it to someone who loves poetry, someone who loves books (perhaps García Márquez in particular), someone who is curious about what it's like to come back from a war zone.
For me it reaches 3 stars because I found it a bit repetitive and a bit tedious at times, though it's just personal preference - it's a good book.
Also, through no fault of Ms. Stark's I'm sure, the Kindle edition does not display time left in chapter, only time left in book. I find this inconvenient as I like to know if I can finish a chapter during my lunch break or before my train arrives at the station.
December 30, 2015
I liked the characters, setting (obviously), and premise, and the book is worth reading if you're looking at how the mental health of Iraq veterans is depicted in literature or, perhaps, at intertextual uses of Garcia Marquez.
However much I liked the ingredients though, the book didn't seem to work for me on a...paragraph?...level. I'm not sure that's it. Maybe it's that a lot of the sentences, while fine, were either just a bit too wordy or were expository sentences (more essay-ish than literary) or weren't each accomplishing much, making it feel a bit mundane and repetitious in between all the parts that were good and interesting. Additionally, there were lots of summaries of parts of 100 Years of Solitude and sections describing the main character's reading process and reactions to reading, etc, which put more drag on the book than necessary.
I think of a character like Eupheus Hines and Reverend Hightower in Light in August and know that there are ways to evoke mad thinking/preaching maybe a bit better. Although it has been awhile and I'm having trouble remembering it, something about this book reminds me of American Music, both in its thematic content and how it just didn't quite come together. Still, I think this one has a bit more going on with interesting characters and character development. It also reminds me a bit of The Sharpest Sight, which I might recommend over this one.
However much I liked the ingredients though, the book didn't seem to work for me on a...paragraph?...level. I'm not sure that's it. Maybe it's that a lot of the sentences, while fine, were either just a bit too wordy or were expository sentences (more essay-ish than literary) or weren't each accomplishing much, making it feel a bit mundane and repetitious in between all the parts that were good and interesting. Additionally, there were lots of summaries of parts of 100 Years of Solitude and sections describing the main character's reading process and reactions to reading, etc, which put more drag on the book than necessary.
I think of a character like Eupheus Hines and Reverend Hightower in Light in August and know that there are ways to evoke mad thinking/preaching maybe a bit better. Although it has been awhile and I'm having trouble remembering it, something about this book reminds me of American Music, both in its thematic content and how it just didn't quite come together. Still, I think this one has a bit more going on with interesting characters and character development. It also reminds me a bit of The Sharpest Sight, which I might recommend over this one.
August 12, 2014
This book is essentially a healing soldier's love letter/love affair to and with his favorite author. While I couldn't quite put my finger on what was "wrong" with Jefferson (PTSD aside), there's definitely some underlying mental illness that plays it's way throughout the book.
Jefferson returns from war and is at a loss for what to do, now that bombs aren't exploding in his face each day. After an achingly long time (the first half of the book, essentially), he decides to track down his favorite author to thank him for writing a book that saved his life. His journey thereafter is full of mishaps and strange occurrences. Some may be hallucinations and dreams, others reality.
While I found this novel to be a little slowly paced and somewhat dry, it is full (though subversively so) of symbolism. Everyone that Jefferson encounters on his journey is a symbol of a soldier he knew, of a casualty he witnessed, of the rebirth of comrades who died in battle. I truly thought that was a nice touch.
I probably would not recommend this book to friends. It's was too poetic of a novel for my liking and I felt it lacked a little substance. Stark writes well, though, and her voice may really be something if she continues as an author.
***I received this book for free as a winner of a "Goodreads First Read" giveaway***
Jefferson returns from war and is at a loss for what to do, now that bombs aren't exploding in his face each day. After an achingly long time (the first half of the book, essentially), he decides to track down his favorite author to thank him for writing a book that saved his life. His journey thereafter is full of mishaps and strange occurrences. Some may be hallucinations and dreams, others reality.
While I found this novel to be a little slowly paced and somewhat dry, it is full (though subversively so) of symbolism. Everyone that Jefferson encounters on his journey is a symbol of a soldier he knew, of a casualty he witnessed, of the rebirth of comrades who died in battle. I truly thought that was a nice touch.
I probably would not recommend this book to friends. It's was too poetic of a novel for my liking and I felt it lacked a little substance. Stark writes well, though, and her voice may really be something if she continues as an author.
***I received this book for free as a winner of a "Goodreads First Read" giveaway***
October 2, 2014
Okay, I have to say that I loved this book! I loved the way Sarah Stark took us on a journey of a very serious issue and did it in such a fashion that there was no way you were going to stop reading as you have to continue with Jefferson! This book gets 5 wonderful stars from me. I sure hope to read more by Sarah again soon!
Jefferson Long Soldier is an Iraq war vet that is trying to learn how to readjust to civilian life. Not an easy feat at all! No one can help him with his terrible sense of the losses he feels. He has his own internal battles to fight. Sometimes it takes a new mission to help that along. Jefferson carried the novel ‘One Hundred Years of Solitude’, with him all through his tour. It saved his life and now that he is home he is hoping it can save him again. He sets out on a mission to find the author of his favorite novel, and along with it the peace he is needing.
Please do yourself a favor and read this book!!! You will not regret it! This is going on my favorites list as soon as I can update it. Thank you very much Sarah Stark and I hope to read more from you soon!!!
January 7, 2016
I'm not a really big fan of magic realism but I do enjoy books about modern Mexico. This is a novel about a young man from who returns home to New Mexico following two tours of duty in Iraq. Jefferson Long Soldier, three-quarters American Indian and one-quarter Mexican, was raised by his grandmother following the early death of his mother. The classic back story. Jefferson was a good student but he thought his most logical career was in the army which he joined straight out of high school in spite of encouragement to pursue further education. Like so many he comes back from war a psychological mess fixated upon the famous novel One Hundred Year of Solitude by the Columbian master of magic realism Gabriel Garcia Marquez whom Jefferson credits with saving his life. Jefferson's English teacher had given him the copy of the book which he nows wears taped to his chest and from which he recites frequently and repetitively. When he is unable to find a solution to his PTSD at home, he borrows his cousin's motor bike and travels to Mexico where Marquez now lives. The novel's resolution is poetic. Recommended.
September 7, 2014
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I was drawn into the story pretty quickly, it was pretty captivating. I've had many family members who have served overseas, so it was pretty impacting to read how a returning soldier coped after returning home. The author wrote it in a way where you could feel the struggles that he was going through.
The the soldier's love of the story One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez is powerful, in which it is the lifeline that keeps him rooted into the world despite what he is dealing with after returning back from Iraq.
I do wish that I would have reading One Hundred Years of Solitude before this book, because I have no doubt it would have added a depth to this book that I missed out on by reading this one first.
This story is a good one, and a powerful one.
4/5 Platypires
http://www.platypire.com/j-hooligan/o...
I was drawn into the story pretty quickly, it was pretty captivating. I've had many family members who have served overseas, so it was pretty impacting to read how a returning soldier coped after returning home. The author wrote it in a way where you could feel the struggles that he was going through.
The the soldier's love of the story One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez is powerful, in which it is the lifeline that keeps him rooted into the world despite what he is dealing with after returning back from Iraq.
I do wish that I would have reading One Hundred Years of Solitude before this book, because I have no doubt it would have added a depth to this book that I missed out on by reading this one first.
This story is a good one, and a powerful one.
4/5 Platypires
http://www.platypire.com/j-hooligan/o...
March 16, 2016
Sarah Stark is the daughter of dear family friends, so I approached this book wanting very much to like it, but with some trepidation that it might not. It's an twisting and turning story of a military vet (Middle East wars) back home on his Native American reservation in New Mexico. The plot is somewhat far-fetched as he embarks on a journey (is this formulaic?) to find the man who wrote a book that saved his life, both from a physical and from an emotional standpoint. Does he get there? Does he succeed? Ms. Stark can write, and her story tugs at the heart but with one or two almost too-incredible adventures along the way. All in all, this fiction meets the mark. It was awarded a "Best Book of the Year" by one prestigious organization.
September 1, 2015
This is an astonishing book, not just for its deep understanding of what it means to be Native in America, but also for its deep grasp on what it means to be fighting in a foreign place, completely unaware of the violence one will face. Sarah Stark delivers an immensely moving story that weaves reality with the magical realism of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, so much so that at times I felt that I was reading one of Marquez's wonderful novels. The brilliance of this story haunts me, days after finishing it, and I found myself continuing to conjure the story of this unforgettable character and his fight for life. Bravo!
September 27, 2016
I have avoided books about the war in Iraq but picked this up in a small independent bookstore in New Mexico - and glad I did. The protagonist is a young man - Mexican and Native American - raised poor but proud in Santa Fe by his grandmother. Although an outstanding student he chooses to enlist in the Army and is sent to Iraq. Upon his return home he sets out on a quest to travel to Mexico and meet Garbriel Garcia Marquez whose book 100 Years of Solitude saved his life. This is a wonderful book about the power of literature, teachers and schools - and family. There is much that is unlikely in the book but - so what. That's allowed in literature.
February 11, 2016
A sweet, simple and very optimistic book. Jefferson Long Soldier returns from Iraq after two tours and has lost his place in the world. He feels that One Hundred Years of Solitude saved his life many times over and starts a journey to find García Márquez to thank him. The journey is as much internal as external, and the narration and sense of place are beautiful. It is more a book about love of books than a book about war.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 13, 2014
Interesting book. Made for a great book group discussion. Some beautiful language particularly at the beginning or ending of chapters. I thought the chapter in the grandmother's voice was the best in the book. If this were a dish I would say it is over salted. I got the impression the writer was trying too hard. With that said I am glad I read it and I look forward to what this author does next.
November 1, 2015
Beautifully Written
Sarah Stark has given us a hero to remember, to love and to share with us the beauty and complexity of life and language. I shall read GGM with Jefferson as my companion.
Sarah Stark has given us a hero to remember, to love and to share with us the beauty and complexity of life and language. I shall read GGM with Jefferson as my companion.
November 1, 2014
Still thinking about this one. Interesting. Will make for good discussion at my book club.
November 20, 2014
Very good read. Thought-provoking story about a veteran's journey to deal with the tragedies of war. It is beautifully written and stays with you long after you finish the book.
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