Shelterbelts

by Candace Simar

Tia Fiskum, the old maid of Tolga Township, yearns to retain her hold on the family farm after her shell-shocked brother returns from World War II. The neighbor she hopes to marry chooses a town girl for his new wife.The Potato King listens to the radio preacher and prays for a miracle. Eddy Root fears a return to the asylum. A German war bride struggles to find acceptance in this tight-knit Scandinavian community. Woven throughout is the man who walks lizards, a grieving father, a disillusioned pastor, and the neighborhood gossipmonger. Shelterbelts chronicles the life of a community struggling to return to normal after war. This is a story true to history of those difficult times while rich in the complications of the human spirit.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Book Club, Fiction

272 pages, Paperback

First published May 15, 2015

Reviews

[Tom · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is rich in its depiction of post WWII life in rural MN. The characters are developed with the kind of depth that allows the reader to envision each one as a person we've met in our past. This trait allows the reader to enjoy both, these new friends, and the old friends and family we are seeing in our mind and hearts as we read about Tolga Township. This simply is a wonderful story.

[Mary Aalgaard · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Shelterbelts" is about a farming community in Minnesota, around the Fergus Falls area. The folks who populate this rural area are, for the most part, Norwegian Americans, and the ones who aren’t stand out like a sore thumb. They have church socials, and a few superstitions, especially when it comes to farming. They are set in their ways and have hard dug furrows that define what women and men should be doing. Tia, for instance, won’t be going to ag school, which she’d love to do. Her brother Norman is expected to go, but he’s not so sure he’s interested in farming anymore, now that he's returned from fighting in World War II. Candace includes a large cast of characters in her novel. We enter each home, and perspective, at various times, as the story is told from many angles.

"Shelterbelts" is a great read for anyone who likes historical fiction, particularly set in rural Minnesota, in the late 1940’s. It’s for anyone who is interested in farm life, and what it used to mean to be a family farm. It’s for anyone who likes to read about a community and how they live and work together, sometimes dropping everything to help a sick neighbor, and at other times, keeping them in their place with preconceived notions and strict religious and cultural beliefs. I loved reading "Shelterbelts." I took my time, savoring the language, and living inside that community. It has become one of my comfort books because it feels like home. It sits alongside Jon Hassler’s "North of Hope", and Lorna Landvik’s "Oh, My Stars."

[Angela Foster · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simar knows how to put together a great story. The characters in Shelterbelts really shine. Often heartbreaking, always entertaining, the characters reveal themselves to be true and complete. You'll laugh and cry. Loved this latest book by author Candace Simar. I also recommend her series, The Abercrombie Trail.

[Carolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it! So much like my first seven years living in a Norwegian community. Candice truly knows her characters.

[Janene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Feb 2017 Book club choice by Carla.

Candace Simar can put more description in two sentences than many authors can put into two pages. This is a tremendous thing. I've never picked up a book of hers that I haven't loved and they seem to stick with me for years to come. This look at the life and trials of small town Minnesota pioneers was very enthusiastically received and reviewed by our book club. I withheld one star as I felt that at the end I yearned for more. so many questions relating to several of the characters and the story itself. I'd love to see Candace do a follow up book.

[Wanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Candace writes another strong story in the Our Town style constructing a community through a short visit with many characters. The people intertwine as do the people you and I live with every day and, as they live with each other, a fabric is woven that upholds them all.

Set in the waning days of World War II in the north central Minnesota community of Tolga Township, a hard farming life is tempered by redemptive decisions and actions restoring Norman Fiskum, his sister Tia and the many other members of the community to a whole life after war's destruction.

Call me simple, but I like a story that reminds me of home and a time I just barely missed. A time I heard about growing up. And characters that I recognize because I live and work with them. Candace can continue writing books like this and I will buy them and recommend them. I like a good story that ends ... well, well.

[Lisa Haberman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shelterbelts is my favorite of Candice Simar's series that focuses on pioneer life in rural Minnesota. I was immediately drawn in to this book as the initial setting is in a barn where the brutal reality of farm life hits you like a ton of bricks. I can know empathize with women who were raised and live on a farm. Candice paints a very realistic portrait of pioneer life I rural Minnesota through out the series and I often thought to myself 'could I have survived during that time in history?' My answer ... Doubtful. I recommend reading These novels in sequential order as to not only identify w/the characters, but to gain appreciation for how life styles evolved during an evolutionary time. Great work!

[Laura Radniecki · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m a born and raised Minnesotan, so I really enjoyed this book. I connected with the characters, became invested in their lives, and cheered them on throughout. My only trouble was keeping some of the names straight; I forgot who was who sometimes.

I want to know more. I think there needs to be a sequel so we can find out what’s next for Tia. Candace - perhaps there’s more to Tia’s story that needs telling?? :)

I would absolutely read more of Candace Simar’s work!

[Sandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would say about a 3 1/2 stars. Started out really good but didn't like how the characters didn't have a lot of closure. Overall good book, first I've read by this author - would like to read more.

[Meg Hanson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book a lot. The characters and story are all very believable, and you feel like you are really there in that time and place. I loved the way you got to know the people from different perspectives. If you like historical fiction I highly recommend this book.

[Barb · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this one well enough. Reminded me of stories I would hear from my grandmother and mother. I think I would have liked it more if I had sat down and read it all in one sitting.

[Julia Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully written and engrossing. I loved the variance of so many voices adding their perspective to the narration. I really felt like I was a part of Tolga Township. A must-read for history fans!

[Kenneth · Rating 4 out of 5]

And excellent read, and excellent writing. It pulls you in from the start and keeps you going until the very last page. I like how the author knows all the details of how a northern MN scandinavian community thinks and adds this together with all the neighbors helping one another and watching out for one another and their lives intertwining. It is set at the end of WW2 in Ottertail County MN with a cast of various members of Tolga Township. The story starts with Tia Fiskum and her family and moves to various other members of the community with ties between them all in each chapter. My only fault is that I wanted more of each of them. A whole book for each of the families and characters would have been even better for this one. Too short just to have a chapter for some of them. I feel like I am just getting introduced and then we are on to someone new.

[Anne Schroeder · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this book because a fellow jistorical fiction author told me it was the best book he'd ever read. I am Norwegian, as is Candace Simar, the Spur Award winning author. I willingly leaped into the page and loved every fierce, stubborn character and every nuanced gentle rule that held Tolga Township, Simar's fictional Norwegian community, together. This is a good book to buy an elderly mother, a favorite sister, a jaded daughter. We need to be reminded to take a breath, allow our humanity to drive our daily lives and improve the quality of our friendships.

[Donna Yliniemi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. The setting is where I first started teaching and the time in history is my parent's and grandparents' generation. It was like looking back into the past to catch a glimpse of life in post-WW II when I lived a generation into the future. The book had a chapter for each character but it followed the same timeline in history during a year. It was easy to keep track of everybody and their story. I call these slice of live stories which were most books when I was a child. It brought back memories and stories I heard from my past and I enjoyed it so much.

[Darlene Christensen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The small township of Tolga Township is the home of small farms that passed for several generation and is struggling to survive and improve their lot in life. WW II has just ended with sons returning home with physical injuries or nightmares and others not returning. Some see their loved ones die of illnesses which today can be cured while others see love lost to other people. This is a good read which kept me reading late at night.

[Kristin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picked up the title as it is this year's selection for the local Community Read Event.

This book is part the greatest generation, part Lake Wobegone, and part my family.

Well-drawn characters who are so human I expect them to walk off the page.

[Annie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved Abercrombie Trail and the others in that series (I think I have most of them 5 stars!). This one just fell flat for me, the story wasn’t very exciting and I had trouble keeping track of the characters.

[Sharon Fletcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book! Pick it up and you won't put it down

[Vicki Mee · Rating 3 out of 5]

About the life of rural mn.

[Kathryn Pritchett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully written. Enjoyed very much.

[PJ Rolfzen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Candace Simar one again gives us a GREAT read! Love her story telling. She makes the past come to life!

[Cheri · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, I would say it was nice. I liked the characters and the familiar setting in Minnesota. I like how the author leaves us with hope for happiness for everyone too.

[DaveNelda Eitreim · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is a good novel about how things were during and after 2nd World War. Set in rural MN.

[Christina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Shelterbelts is a slow moving, glimpse into the lives of a small Minnesota town after the end of World War II. The character development is steady, but stays fairly close to the surface with most characters. There is no action and little conflict between the characters in the book. One of the characters gossips quite a bit and her husband wants to divorce her because of it. I would say that is the most dramatic scene. The author details the daily hardships of farming in the 1940s. Some readers might find that quaint or interesting.

The character who saves the book is Norman. Norman has depth. Norman has just returned home after 5 years in a German POW camp and is struggling to adjust back to “normal” life. I found his character quite interesting and enjoyable to read.

I would recommend this book to someone if they are looking for an easy book to read and want a little get-a-way, without any drama or suspense. The star rating system on Goodreads states that 2 stars means the book was "ok." That is exactly how I would classify this book: ok.

[Charles Johnson]

SHELTERBELTS
By Candace Simar
267 pages
Published by North Star Press


My taste in reading favors people; real people. I’m not much for murder mysteries or romances. Give me ordinary folks who live ordinary lives but yet have their own stories to tell.

You can’t get much more ordinary than a community of farmers in a nondescript Minnesota township. Yet, that’s what Candace Simar gives us in this novel. Her ordinary people become folks we all know from our own lives; the blabbermouth gossip lady, the simple village idiot, the old maid to be, the mothers and fathers who have hopes for their kids, the kids who might dash those hopes . . . and let us not forget the community built around the businesses in those townships, from the farm supply dealers, across the street to the merchants, and down the road to the ramshackle Lutheran church which serves as the social and spiritual center for the people in this book.

Candace Simar’s writing style is warm and neighborly. Taking from her pool of wonderful words, she gives us descriptions that finds us saying to ourselves, “Hey, I know someone just like that!” There’s Tia the spinster to be, who could just as well be your own cousin Barbie. There’s Harvey, the struggling farmer who never gives up, even though his son Eddie is a simpleton – just like the guy down the road from your house. You’ve all met someone like Tillie – she’s the one who knows everything about everyone in the town and for sure will you can bet she will tell you everything about everyone in the town, often in one breath.

Your mind sees and feels each character – their clothing, their posture, their ethics . . . and you have felt their emotional disappointments, their victories, their hopes and dreams. You know what it’s like to not be properly dressed for certain social occasions. You know what it’s like to observe an awkward moment at a public gathering – or even have been the center of one of those awkward moments. All of this is here, made clear by the hand of Candace Simar in SHELTERBELTS.

The novel takes place at the very end of World War II. The boys that have left the farms to serve Uncle Sam haven’t quite returned yet; well okay, one does. Those in the township go through their lives, doing mundane chores, observing the weather and all conditions that concern farming, planning on money coming in from crops and egg sales. The radio is a big source of news. A few farms have been innovative enough to allow their houses to be wired for electricity, who some find uppity, while others become jealous.

But at the top of it all, the theme of community commands the reader’s attention. The mechanics of the social interplay become a stage of action for Simar’s writing – and she generates hearfelt actions out of that mechanical world. Through her characters, she reminds us that the community is out there, so full of support and hurt, all at the same time . . . and not letting us forget that our own community, flawed as it may be, is still so very near and dear to us.

There is a list of emotions that appear here – elation, disappointment, jealousy, spiritual glory, the joys of simple life – Simar paints all of them with a clarity and realism that draws deeply upon our own wells of emotion.

I just wish the book didn’t end so quickly – I wanted to know more about the characters and where they were headed. I wanted to read more about the improvement in their lives as the effects of World War II faded. Perhaps there will be a SHELTERBELTS II.

There are several books about community that I read over and over again, year after year – Steinbeck’s EAST OF EDEN, Lee’s TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD and Hassler’s GRAND OPENING, come to mind. I’m adding Simar’s SHELTERBELTS to that list.


*I have had the pleasure of meeting Candace Simar, a writer living in central Minnesota. Other books she has written include ABERCROMBIE TRAIL, BLOOMING PRAIRIE and FARM GIRLS. I must also add that she is a fine SCRABBLE player, having bested me more often than not in the online version of that game of words.

[Dianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Minnesota author. I find reading novels on Minnesota interesting especially if they are considered Historical Fiction. I did enjoy this book. But here in southern Minnesota we call shelterbelts groves.

[Katie Foth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shelterbelts provides an almost Lake-Wobegon-like picture of a farming community in western Minnesota during WW2 (Tolga Township). Each chapter is told from a different viewpoint, weaving several story lines together. The main character seems to be Tia Fiskum, who has run the family farm since her father died and her brother Norman went off to war. Tia has always hoped to marry her neighbor, Clyde Hanson. His parents Ingeborg and Olaf are unhappy when Clyde chooses to marry a town girl, Vera Sonmor. Tillie Stenerson gossips about Nels Carlson hanging out at the local bar and cheating on his dying wife Olga but later suffers the consequences when her husband Clarence threatens to divorce her. Julius Olson considers installing electricity against the wishes of his domineering mother Gunda (whose husband Everett committed suicide during the Great Depression). Nedra Ingvalstad returns home when her husband is killed in the war but later leaves for California. Mildred Moberg, the church organist and Tia Fiskum's best friend, is attracted to Norman Fiskum despite the fact that he drinks away his sorrows from the war. Mildred struggles to free herself from her domineering deacon father Selmer, who disapproves of the romance. Harvey and Blanche Root, both struggling with health problems, consider what to do with their mentally challenged son Eddy. Pastor Melvin Hustvedt requests a transfer after Nels Carlson is miraculously healed by a radio preacher and starts Bible studies in his home. Mansel and Ada Jorgenson care for their disabled daughter Minna. The death of their other four children places a strain on their marriage. When Nelson Carlson's son George comes home with a German war bride, the community struggles to accept Freida. When the Ingvalstad farm is sold to George Lindquist, another war veteran, the community welcomes a new member. Obviously, it's easy to get mixed up with the multitude of characters, but the viewpoints are enlightening. The book ends on a hopeful note. A great picture of rural life during the WW2 era.

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

My book club and I all enjoyed reading this book. It was filled with characters that we could relate to in our family histories and even to people in our Mn. small town with its Norwegian heritage. The book ended in a way that we could either determine our own ending but most in the book club would like to read a sequel that continues with the same characters and how their lives change in the future. A very good book that was fun to read.

[Karen Spitzer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spellbinding! Thank You Candace for allowing me to return to
my childhood in Dane Prarie Township, Rural Minnesota...You
described so vividly farm life and its rigors. Your characters will
stay with me and in my heart...and your descriptions are so
poignant, ie: "His voice was a gentle key of B". Thank You
for a wonderful book.

Karen Spitzer