Sometimes life is not big enough. Sometimes sharing a classroom with the problems, needs, smells and eccentricities of thirty children for eight hours a day can’t compare with your dreams. Dreams of sharing a campfire with Jack London, riding a freight train with Woody Guthrie, walking a dusty road with John Steinbeck, singing the blues with Blind Willie Johnson.
When The River Still Ran follows the fortunes of Joe Abshire, a teacher who, in an attempt to live a life closer to that of his heroes, takes to the rails of Cornwall and the Tamar Delta as a free living, freight hopping hobo. On his travels, as well as discovering that old lives cannot so easily be left behind, Joe learns the tale of Raincrow and Zoraida, two elderly tramps who met and fell in love many years ago, but who now live separate, lonely lives. Convinced that they deserve better from time and fate, Joe does what he can to rewrite their story.
A witty, warm hearted and moving journey from the realities of every day life to the dreams, ghosts and moonstreaked rails of the Cornish night. And back again.
"It's a five and if I gave it less I'd be lying. Who would enjoy this? Almost anyone. It is a lovely blend of snide asides, romance, action, humour, and tragedy, and brings some intriguing characters to life on the page. "
Reviewer: Reader for Bookangel.
Tired of his class of 30 8-to-11 year-olds, our hero, Joe, ditches them for the life of a hobo. Successfully he manages to swing himself onto a train crossing the Tamar Bridge and then sets out to panhandle his way round Cornwall. Sadly, a practice from the turn of the twentieth century America doesn't transfer so well to the post-millennial Cornwall. With the stars in his eyes, he's moved on by security for encouraging seagulls, hides from railwaymen, and tries busking for children who'd rather keep their cash.
I love the tone of this book. He's a modern day Don Quixote, absolutely entranced with the romance of it all and decidedly baffled when others aren't. Surrounded by people getting on with modern day life, he rhapsodises about the silent film era and play his harmonica (to the accompaniment of "shutyergob" from the local long-suffering teenagers). It's the type of book that gets reviewers fishing for words like 'charming' and 'quaint' and missing out the best parts of it - snide, sarcastic, and with a huge serving of dry wit throughout.
Joe Abshire is an entertaining narrator. The teacher's constant exasperation with his pupils - who are enough to drive anyone to drink, if not to running away on trains - evokes more than a few chuckles and a few downright mean-spirited laughs. Given his class I can only say rather him than me. His teaching life is interwoven with his adventures on the train tracks, exploring the rails, the people he meets and the stories he hears. The hobo's stories contained here are beautifully written, well into the realms of literary fiction.
There's one part I wish had been broken up slightly more. The short life histories of the various hobos told to him are fascinating, but in one unbroken group I found them a bit heavy going. One note: in my opinion to get the best from this book, read it through straight. This is the rare book where spoilers will actual spoil and not help.
I was going to give this a four. When I got to the end, I couldn't. It's a five and if I gave it less I'd be lying. Who would enjoy this? Almost anyone.
Sometimes there's a book that makes you really regret the newspaper column was submitted one day before you finished the book, and a book that means taking a break from reviewing to avoid other books suffering in comparison. This was both.
I genuinely wanted the characters to have a happy ending, but I was equally unsure that they would through the entire length of the book. The contrast between the school's rigid system and the unstructured world the hobos live in was really well done, but it was so realistic about the downsides of both. This was a really good read.
I am hoping that this means a five out of five, and if that is the case then I am interested. Judging from the rest of the review I think this is correct, and the blend of all those elements really does sound quite appealing. Thank you for this one, and I love the more character driven stories.
Perfect. There is not other word. This book was just, just, perfect.
It has been months since I read it, and yet I can still remember exactly how it made me feel.
