Inland

Inland is, on the face of it, a historical Western novel set in an arid, drought ridden landscape which Obreht breathtakingly evokes on every page. Two narrative threads tell the stories of Nora - endlessly awaiting the return of her husband and sons - and Lurie - remembering his adventurous camelteering days. I absolutely loved the way their lives eventually connected and hadn't figured it out in advance even though, with hindsight, perhaps the clues were there. I had no idea of the role camel trains had played in Wild West exploration or even that camels had been taken to 1850s America so I was fascinated to learn about this forgotten history. Obreht wove facts into an almost Hispanic magical realism novel which I felt fitted brilliantly well with frequent opaque visions of spirits and ghosts who cling tenaciously to some of the living characters.

My problem with Inland is that it took me nearly a quarter of the book to really begin to understand the story. I'm not sure if this was because the early chapters are particularly baffling or because my reading was more fragmented than usual due to a lack of time. I will be interested to find out if other reviewers thought the same. Once I got into the story however, I was transported by it. Obreht's understanding of her disparate characters is impressive and their actions felt authentic and believable throughout, especially considering their increasingly dire circumstances. I felt 'that sorry' for poor put-upon Josie! There's a great depth to this novel and I appreciated the mix of domestic detail, political manoeuvring and otherworldly interation. It all makes for a wonderfully distinctive work!