Gale

Chris Bohjalian is one of my favorite authors at the moment. He was introduced to me by my sister, she too is a big fan. I recently finished reading Buffalo Soldier, the fifth book I've read by him and I just loved it. It takes quite a lot for me to set my chores, lists, and housework aside to just read, but for Chris Bohjalian, I'll do just that.
I've thought about his writing, his stories, and tried to determine what it is that holds my interest... what it is that lures me and holds me in the pages between the covers. I think in part it is the characters... they're real people, and at the same time they're more than ordinary. They are heroes, they are villains, they are good, bad and indifferent... they're like you and me on our best and worst days. Chris Bohjalian also takes some very real issues that we deal with in these particular times... and he makes them interesting, personal, and believable. His writing style is easy to follow, but not necessarily 'easy'. It's challenging, and I always feel that I've come away with a renewed appreciation for humanity, for people, for individuals that you never really know until you interact with them. I've come to respect and tolerate lifestyles with which I'm unfamiliar, not just because they may seem "cool" but because they are real for those that are involved. This particular book dealt a lot with grief and how different people react to it. Other books have dealt with death, the law, pressures from society, medicine... many subjects and many threads of stories running through the main idea.
Has anyone else read this author? What are your impressions? The Gale was the river that ran through the town in this most recently read book. The Gale is also a tune you can find in Along the River.