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The Lake, the River & the Other Lake
Welcome to the resort town of Weneshkeen, nestled along Michigan’s Gold Coast, where the sapphire-blue Lake Meenigeesis and the winding Oh-John-Ninny River lie within spitting distance of Lake Michigan. This once-quaint village–home of the yearly Sumac Days festival; a legendary bootlegger’s mansion; and excellent locally made sausage, cherry pie, and fudge–has become a complex melting pot. There are townies and old-timers who still inhabit the simpler cottages along the shore; ritzy summer folk who’ve bought up the best lakefront and built view-blocking estates; migrant cherry pickers and wily river guides; there are even a few Ojibwe Indians still around.
It is the summer of 2001, and one of these “original people,” Roger Drinkwater, a ’Nam vet and lifelong resident, is plotting extra-legal revenge against the “idiot boy” jet-skiers polluting his beloved lake, even as he’s pursuing Janey Struska, the take-no-guff deputy sheriff. Mean-while, Mark Starkey, a summer kid from downstate, stumbles into a danger-laced romance with the sexiest rich girl in town; the old-guard cherry farmer “Von” vonBushberger struggles with the legacy of his rapidly changing family; and the town’s retired reverend discovers the Internet in the aftermath of his wife’s death and finds a new friend in his computer tutor, Kimmy, a teenager who is having a challenging summer of her own. These lives intertwine in surprising ways as the summer blooms, becoming a season of crises both actual and averted, and of rewarding human connection. Finally, The Lake, the River & the Other Lak e is a moving testament to the homegrown Midwestern view that most people, when really pressed, will do the right thing.
Steve Amick himself is a delightful discovery; his big heart and gift for social comedy are everywhere evident in this novel of good people trying to find their way.
It is the summer of 2001, and one of these “original people,” Roger Drinkwater, a ’Nam vet and lifelong resident, is plotting extra-legal revenge against the “idiot boy” jet-skiers polluting his beloved lake, even as he’s pursuing Janey Struska, the take-no-guff deputy sheriff. Mean-while, Mark Starkey, a summer kid from downstate, stumbles into a danger-laced romance with the sexiest rich girl in town; the old-guard cherry farmer “Von” vonBushberger struggles with the legacy of his rapidly changing family; and the town’s retired reverend discovers the Internet in the aftermath of his wife’s death and finds a new friend in his computer tutor, Kimmy, a teenager who is having a challenging summer of her own. These lives intertwine in surprising ways as the summer blooms, becoming a season of crises both actual and averted, and of rewarding human connection. Finally, The Lake, the River & the Other Lak e is a moving testament to the homegrown Midwestern view that most people, when really pressed, will do the right thing.
Steve Amick himself is a delightful discovery; his big heart and gift for social comedy are everywhere evident in this novel of good people trying to find their way.
384 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2005
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 116 reviews
February 26, 2025
It seems that many of the negative reactions to this book come from one scene -- but it is a rich and textured scene, necessary to the book! And the rest of the book tells a fascinating story about commitment to place and what place demands of us. I continue to think it is a brilliant book. Here's a thing I wrote for the local monthly back when the book came out:
At the Michigan Songwriters' Festival at the Ark last January, Ann Arbor native Steve Amick sang "I'm Sorry for You (If You Don't Live Here)," his rousing and only slightly ironic chronicling of a few of the often acquired pleasures of living in this particular part of the planet. Now Pantheon has published his first novel, The Lake, the River, and the Other Lake, which is, among several other things, a celebration of a long lazy summer on the shores of Lake Michigan.
Amick's story is set in the fictitious town of Weneshkeen, a small place populated, particularly in the summer, with a cast of characters that cuts through the American grain. Although the town lives only in the imaginations of its author and his readers, it is probably somewhere north of Ludington and south of Sleeping Bear. If you've ever driven that coastline in June or August, you'll recognize it.
But the novel's real appeal is its characters. Roger Drinkwater, an Ojibwa and a former Navy Seal who served in Vietnam, uses his knowledge of the area and of explosives to wreak havoc on local Jet Skis. His friend Janey, a deputy passed over for promotion to sheriff because of her gender and her status as a "local," knows what Roger is up to but chooses not to act on that knowledge. Gene Reecher, recently retired, after the death of his wife, from his long service as the pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, finds himself troublingly attracted to the teenage girl teaching him to do e-mail. There's a twenty-one-year-old dotcom billionaire who is planning to make his next fortune selling the local drink, "sumac lemonade." There's the heartless teenage beauty from Chicago whose lovemaking is literally an earth-shaking catastrophe. And I haven't even touched on the family that runs the local cherry orchard. Then there are the mysterious lights that appear in the sky and the uncertain, almost mystical presence of an unseen celebrity hovering over everyone's summer tales. And a haunted house that might have belonged to Al Capone. All of these things will make you laugh, and a few of the people will make you cry.
At one point some members of a farm family are thinking about planting more varied produce. "We don't exactly have anything very exotic in our vegetable garden," one of them complains. The curmudgeonly patriarch responds, "On account of we don't live in an exotic land." But that father learns differently, and Steve Amick's particular gift to his readers is to show us the local mysteries we tend to overlook. He makes ordinariness exotic.
https://annarborobserver.com/articles...
At the Michigan Songwriters' Festival at the Ark last January, Ann Arbor native Steve Amick sang "I'm Sorry for You (If You Don't Live Here)," his rousing and only slightly ironic chronicling of a few of the often acquired pleasures of living in this particular part of the planet. Now Pantheon has published his first novel, The Lake, the River, and the Other Lake, which is, among several other things, a celebration of a long lazy summer on the shores of Lake Michigan.
Amick's story is set in the fictitious town of Weneshkeen, a small place populated, particularly in the summer, with a cast of characters that cuts through the American grain. Although the town lives only in the imaginations of its author and his readers, it is probably somewhere north of Ludington and south of Sleeping Bear. If you've ever driven that coastline in June or August, you'll recognize it.
But the novel's real appeal is its characters. Roger Drinkwater, an Ojibwa and a former Navy Seal who served in Vietnam, uses his knowledge of the area and of explosives to wreak havoc on local Jet Skis. His friend Janey, a deputy passed over for promotion to sheriff because of her gender and her status as a "local," knows what Roger is up to but chooses not to act on that knowledge. Gene Reecher, recently retired, after the death of his wife, from his long service as the pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, finds himself troublingly attracted to the teenage girl teaching him to do e-mail. There's a twenty-one-year-old dotcom billionaire who is planning to make his next fortune selling the local drink, "sumac lemonade." There's the heartless teenage beauty from Chicago whose lovemaking is literally an earth-shaking catastrophe. And I haven't even touched on the family that runs the local cherry orchard. Then there are the mysterious lights that appear in the sky and the uncertain, almost mystical presence of an unseen celebrity hovering over everyone's summer tales. And a haunted house that might have belonged to Al Capone. All of these things will make you laugh, and a few of the people will make you cry.
At one point some members of a farm family are thinking about planting more varied produce. "We don't exactly have anything very exotic in our vegetable garden," one of them complains. The curmudgeonly patriarch responds, "On account of we don't live in an exotic land." But that father learns differently, and Steve Amick's particular gift to his readers is to show us the local mysteries we tend to overlook. He makes ordinariness exotic.
https://annarborobserver.com/articles...
February 21, 2010
I can't remember who gave me this book to read (my mom? my sister?), but it was quite disappointing. If there were half-star options, I would give this book 2 1/2 stars, rather than 3.
First of all, the dustcover claims that this book is funny, which is really isn't. In fact, they called it a "comic novel." Not true. They also boast of "richly drawn characters," which actually is pretty funny, considering that one of my main complaints about this novel was the LACK of character development. Perhaps if the author had stuck to fewer main characters, he would have developed them more fully. Instead, I can count at least 8 characters who tell this story from their perspective, and honestly, I didn't care much for most of them. The preacher was particularly difficult to like by the end of the novel, and I'm not sure why the author took that particular character there... you'll see if you read this.
I cannot, in good conscience, recommend this novel to anyone. But if you feel obligated to read it for some reason (perhaps one of your relatives also foisted it upon you), let me know what you think of it. I really tried to like this, and gave it every opportunity to redeem itself by the end, but there was really no point to it, and very little humor to be found.
First of all, the dustcover claims that this book is funny, which is really isn't. In fact, they called it a "comic novel." Not true. They also boast of "richly drawn characters," which actually is pretty funny, considering that one of my main complaints about this novel was the LACK of character development. Perhaps if the author had stuck to fewer main characters, he would have developed them more fully. Instead, I can count at least 8 characters who tell this story from their perspective, and honestly, I didn't care much for most of them. The preacher was particularly difficult to like by the end of the novel, and I'm not sure why the author took that particular character there... you'll see if you read this.
I cannot, in good conscience, recommend this novel to anyone. But if you feel obligated to read it for some reason (perhaps one of your relatives also foisted it upon you), let me know what you think of it. I really tried to like this, and gave it every opportunity to redeem itself by the end, but there was really no point to it, and very little humor to be found.
June 13, 2018
What a huge disappointment. The cover of this book appealed to me, along with the fact that I spent my summers growing up on vacation in Northern Michigan. I was expecting this book to be funny, but it had too many characters, their personalities were all flat, and the book had way too much explicit content for my tastes. The only thing about the book that I enjoyed was the references to cherries, fudge, Lake Michigan, etc. The author should have stuck to these things without getting so weird.
October 2, 2018
I'm sooooo lucky I found this in a bargain bin immediately before road tripping through all the areas mentioned in this hilarious and moving book. I couldn't look at jetskis or fudge in the same way though.... Damn fudgies....
April 30, 2009
Book Club Pick: I'll never look at Iced Coffee the same way again. This book is Lame.
September 23, 2024
I almost DNFd this book sooooo many times
First we start with 10 pages of history but was sooo difficult to understand
Then the chapters switch around to different characters so you spend the first few paragraphs trying to figure out who it is
Absolutely lost me when the old man fucking jizzed in the iced coffee??? Like what the fuck
Not to mention there wasn’t a plot to ANYTHING
First we start with 10 pages of history but was sooo difficult to understand
Then the chapters switch around to different characters so you spend the first few paragraphs trying to figure out who it is
Absolutely lost me when the old man fucking jizzed in the iced coffee??? Like what the fuck
Not to mention there wasn’t a plot to ANYTHING
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 19, 2019
This was a fun read. The ending wasn't my favorite, but there was at least some finality to it.
November 16, 2008
The copyright page of Steve Amick's first novel The Lake, the River and the Other Lake identifies it as identity (psychology), while Publishers Weekly portrays the contents as a sort of Northern Exposure (the popular TV series of the mid-80s) with quirky characters living a soap opera in Weneshkeen, the fictional name given a small town on Lake Michigan's Gold Coast to perhaps protect the inhabitants from the outside world. As a fan of character-driven fiction I had high hopes for this novel; unfortunately I found Amick's novel failed on a number of levels.
I found all of the characters fell short of reality, shown as two-dimensional, caricatures that never really evolved. All of the male characters fare poorly, overshadowed by their female counterparts. Courtney, the teen who is obviously the victim of child abuse, in turn inflicts her own special brand of abuse, mercilessly manipulating and humiliating her young suitor, Mark, who seems powerless against his own sexual obsession of the object of his lust. Yet young Mark is a victim for whom little sympathy can be given in the face of his willingness to allow himself to be treated so poorly - in the end it is Courtney who fingers authority and not Mark himself who gives the finger to Courtney, losing her (not that she is a prize worthy of loss) only through circumstances, not by his own strength of character.
Brenda Vonbushberger is the voice of reason to her bigoted husband who goes through a Scrooge-like transformation mid-book with little character introspection as to his thought process. The reader is left to accept the catalyst for this change as reason enough, and so much of the drama is missing.
Roger Drinkwater, the Ojibwa/Polish local and Viet Nam vet who wages war against the seasonal jet skiers who inhabit the lake on which he lives vandalizes, in increasingly spectacular fashion, the property of others while Janey, his romantic interest and the local law enforcement officer, turns her head even as she fights her own battle against outsider Sheriff Hatchert who, as another male character, is depicted as a "jackass."
Kimmy, the young sixteen-year-old who tutors Gene, a recently widowed and retired reverend of the local church, on use of the Internet, is naïve yet shows more wisdom than her father who, in his fight against his neighbor's lawsuit against him for cutting down a row of trees on his property line to improve his sightline of the lake, suddenly gives up his battle in the face of his own guilt for causing his neighbor's wife's allergic reaction to sausages he placed in her shopping cart at the local grocery. While Gene, the reverend, shows man at his worst. Initially depicted as a man of God who had a happy if somewhat mundane marriage, Gene too quickly becomes addicted to Internet teen porn and, as a result, becomes obsessed with his young tutor, Kimmy, who seems all too eager (or naïve) to forgive his transgressions when she discovers that he has become a full-fledged pedophile. I shudder, perhaps in my own naivety, to think that her character is an accurate depiction of our youth today.
In short order The Lake touches upon vandalism, bigotry, teen sex and pedophilia. While I understand that, no, life's circumstances don't always end happily ever after, overall, The Lake fails to culminate in any real satisfactory conclusion. Indeed, the epilogue, which seems a half-hearted attempt, perhaps at the publisher's urging, to leave the reader on an upbeat note, only manages to belittle the tragic endings of several characters.
The book has its moments, but far too few, and I was left wondering of Amick's intent for writing such a book. A literary Northern Exposure? Hardly, as I found few of the characters likeable or sympathetic. An exploration of the human psyche? Again, no, for he failed to explore deep enough, in the manner of a Philip Roth, the angst behind these character's dark sides, nor show the light. An editorial of our society's decline? If so, where is the message, the warning? If one exists it is far too subtle to be noticed. Simple fiction, mere escapism, a fun summer read? No, for the subject matter is far too deep, far too disturbing, to be treated so lightly.
I found all of the characters fell short of reality, shown as two-dimensional, caricatures that never really evolved. All of the male characters fare poorly, overshadowed by their female counterparts. Courtney, the teen who is obviously the victim of child abuse, in turn inflicts her own special brand of abuse, mercilessly manipulating and humiliating her young suitor, Mark, who seems powerless against his own sexual obsession of the object of his lust. Yet young Mark is a victim for whom little sympathy can be given in the face of his willingness to allow himself to be treated so poorly - in the end it is Courtney who fingers authority and not Mark himself who gives the finger to Courtney, losing her (not that she is a prize worthy of loss) only through circumstances, not by his own strength of character.
Brenda Vonbushberger is the voice of reason to her bigoted husband who goes through a Scrooge-like transformation mid-book with little character introspection as to his thought process. The reader is left to accept the catalyst for this change as reason enough, and so much of the drama is missing.
Roger Drinkwater, the Ojibwa/Polish local and Viet Nam vet who wages war against the seasonal jet skiers who inhabit the lake on which he lives vandalizes, in increasingly spectacular fashion, the property of others while Janey, his romantic interest and the local law enforcement officer, turns her head even as she fights her own battle against outsider Sheriff Hatchert who, as another male character, is depicted as a "jackass."
Kimmy, the young sixteen-year-old who tutors Gene, a recently widowed and retired reverend of the local church, on use of the Internet, is naïve yet shows more wisdom than her father who, in his fight against his neighbor's lawsuit against him for cutting down a row of trees on his property line to improve his sightline of the lake, suddenly gives up his battle in the face of his own guilt for causing his neighbor's wife's allergic reaction to sausages he placed in her shopping cart at the local grocery. While Gene, the reverend, shows man at his worst. Initially depicted as a man of God who had a happy if somewhat mundane marriage, Gene too quickly becomes addicted to Internet teen porn and, as a result, becomes obsessed with his young tutor, Kimmy, who seems all too eager (or naïve) to forgive his transgressions when she discovers that he has become a full-fledged pedophile. I shudder, perhaps in my own naivety, to think that her character is an accurate depiction of our youth today.
In short order The Lake touches upon vandalism, bigotry, teen sex and pedophilia. While I understand that, no, life's circumstances don't always end happily ever after, overall, The Lake fails to culminate in any real satisfactory conclusion. Indeed, the epilogue, which seems a half-hearted attempt, perhaps at the publisher's urging, to leave the reader on an upbeat note, only manages to belittle the tragic endings of several characters.
The book has its moments, but far too few, and I was left wondering of Amick's intent for writing such a book. A literary Northern Exposure? Hardly, as I found few of the characters likeable or sympathetic. An exploration of the human psyche? Again, no, for he failed to explore deep enough, in the manner of a Philip Roth, the angst behind these character's dark sides, nor show the light. An editorial of our society's decline? If so, where is the message, the warning? If one exists it is far too subtle to be noticed. Simple fiction, mere escapism, a fun summer read? No, for the subject matter is far too deep, far too disturbing, to be treated so lightly.
May 13, 2021
At first I liked it but when it turned to being about rich kids having weird sex it started to lose me. It had many funny parts, but when I hit Chapter 77 the whole thing about the Reverend made me dry heave and almost vomit. The writer could have left ALL of that out, including the website parts that led up to it. Disgusting. And then it ended abruptly, so you never know what happened to Kimberly and her dad and the law suit with the neighbor, or if the Deputy makes Sheriff, and does Drinkwater get his hearing back. I hate endings with too many questions. Funny parts, but I'm disappointed.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 15, 2014
Really pretty endearing. As a Michigander, I kept trying to figure out which Lake Michigan coastal town was being described. Not that it matters. Amick has the description and characters down, and it is the characters that kept me reading. I especially enjoyed Kimberly Lasco and Janey Struska. There is enough plot, with failure and redemption, to keep you reading to the end. Not all of it is pleasant, but to a Michigander, it rings true. David Letterman is a nice touch, too.
December 9, 2008
I would have given this book a five if it weren't for the incident that happened with the minister right at the end. I really liked these characters and felt immersed in their small town life. I also loved the references to so many different aspects of Michigan life. I really wish he would have gone a different route with wrapping up the minister's story. Oh well.
April 24, 2017
Pie, sausage and fudge and septic tanks, "migrant cherry pickers and wiley river guides"
A stellar cast of characters
My favorites: Roger Drinkwater and Deputy Sheriff Janey Struska and Kimberly Lasco
A must read for jet-ski haters
A stellar cast of characters
My favorites: Roger Drinkwater and Deputy Sheriff Janey Struska and Kimberly Lasco
A must read for jet-ski haters
November 6, 2019
Quirky and enjoyable. Set in the Lake District of Michigan. Different in that it is not part of a series and there is a lot of humor in it.
June 27, 2018
I enjoyed some of the characters in this book and appreciated and related that it took place in Michigan but was disappointed to learn that the town was made up. It was sort of like a Traverse City type place with the fudge and cherries and the Lake Michigan. There was a lot of sexual things in the book and some were uncomfortable to read about, particularly with the reverend and the young girl. The rich girl, Courtney was horrible and had a lot of weird sexual turn ons that were also strange to read about. I did enjoy the cherry picking family and the son marrying the cherry picker from Guatamala and the daughter marrying the Japanese blossom researcher. The dad from that family was funny and even though their story was sad because the son's baby died, the father accepts their spouses. The cop and the Native American couple was funny too. He hated the noise of the jet skis and had an accident with explosives and lost his hearing so he didn't hear them any more.
This review was all over the place but there was a lot going on in the story.
This review was all over the place but there was a lot going on in the story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 14, 2018
As a Hoosier with many childhood visits to Ludington, and Charlevoix and Traverse City during the 1960's, and as a long time resident of Gary's lakefront area that is, even with the city's bad rep, getting a number of "weekend" owners, this novel resonated with me in many ways. The outsiders with their annoying jet skis, loud weekend parties and tendency toward cutsie "shore-decor". On the other hand, visiting a Michigan lakefront city, a cone of blue ice cream while walking out to the lighthouse to watch the ferry to Milwaukee leave, sunsets...In this novel each character has a dense set up; they seem just like people I ought to know or be.
December 30, 2022
After reading the first 50 pages of several books recently, I was pleased to be drawn to this book.
I'm from Michigan, spent a lot of time at and on Lake Michigan, grew up in area of lakes frequented Chicagoans in the summer. They would appear gradually over the early summer but disappear like a popped balloon on Labor Day. They weren't fudgies, just 'Chicago People' and their daughters. Okay enough, I identified strongly with the book.
Liked the characters very much, loved the humor, liked the story. Have to regretfully subtract a star for the ending. (I laughed at the iced coffee scene, mostly imagining how the prudes would react.
I'm from Michigan, spent a lot of time at and on Lake Michigan, grew up in area of lakes frequented Chicagoans in the summer. They would appear gradually over the early summer but disappear like a popped balloon on Labor Day. They weren't fudgies, just 'Chicago People' and their daughters. Okay enough, I identified strongly with the book.
Liked the characters very much, loved the humor, liked the story. Have to regretfully subtract a star for the ending. (I laughed at the iced coffee scene, mostly imagining how the prudes would react.
October 3, 2018
A surprising literary amble through the lives of people in a small town in Michigan. At times just sensible humor and, at others, darkly comic, Amick’s book feels like the kind of book that should be in every gift shop on Michigan’s Gold Coast. The visiting Fudgies would get a kick out of it, and I’d imagine locals would see themselves within the pages, as well.
I wavered a bit between 4 and 5 stars on this.
I wavered a bit between 4 and 5 stars on this.
February 25, 2023
Maybe it was just nostalgia (I grew up in Michigan), but I really enjoyed this novel which was basically a series of vignettes following a handful of characters in a small resort town. A nice balance of humor and pathos. I would have given it five stars but it all didn't quite come together in the end like I was anticipating. Still a good read.
April 23, 2025
A quirky, fun read. I disagree with other reviewers who felt the characters were two dimensional. There is one storyline that I can understand why some people found it disturbing, but I found the book to be well written and plotted.
A fun find at an enormous used bookstore, chamblin’s bookmine in Jacksonville
A fun find at an enormous used bookstore, chamblin’s bookmine in Jacksonville
January 9, 2019
I bought this book back in 2006. I like the cover art, basically. I read it, and was generally ambivalent about. It didn't really leave a lasting impression, save for one specific part. Probably wouldn't read it again. Ended up in my big pile of books that were sold.
April 24, 2023
Struggled to stay interested, started finally to get caught up in the story. Then felt it was going too dark, then it ended without finishing key character arcs. Some decent writing, great character development, but overall left me feeling meh.
April 20, 2024
I really wanted to like this book more but some of the characters and content were just too much for me (Rev. Gene, Mark, Courtney). Because of that I can’t even pass this along to my mom to read.
Also, the ending sorta fell flat. I wanted to know how things ended with Von and his family.
Also, the ending sorta fell flat. I wanted to know how things ended with Von and his family.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 27, 2024
It's a good summer read to pass time and very well written. Plot wise it's not super interesting. I read it like fifteen minutes a day just as a leisure read, but I wouldn't say it's a mind blowing, heart-wrenching, read. I didn't completely finish the book, but I would say it's not bad.
June 7, 2017
Read in Michigan, appropriately enough. The "try not to be an asshole" philosophy in the book remains dear to my heart. Maybe I should cross-stitch it onto a cushion.
November 16, 2017
Good story, but to much explicit sex and language. Ruined it.
May 16, 2019
Could not finish. Might have been better but I could not get into it. Wish I knew where it was set.
June 20, 2020
Not for me!
October 10, 2020
I read this long ago but remember really liking it
January 16, 2021
wonderfully evocative of summertime in Michigan
great sense of humor about some topics that might be a bit more dark these days
I'd read more by this author
great fun
great sense of humor about some topics that might be a bit more dark these days
I'd read more by this author
great fun
February 1, 2021
The ending really killed it for me.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 116 reviews