Virgil Wander by Leif Enger

December’s book club selection was Virgil Wander, by Leif Enger. For a frosty Tuesday evening, we had a great turnout with an excellent discussion! Many thanks to those who braved the cold!

Virgil Wander tells the story of a Midwestern movie house owner, appropriately named Virgil Wander, who is "cruising along at medium altitude" when his car flies off the road and into icy Lake Superior. Virgil survives, but his language and memory are altered and he emerges into a world no longer familiar to him. Awakening in this new life, Virgil begins to piece together his personal history and the lore of his broken town, with the help of a cast of affable and curious locals--from Rune, a twinkling, pipe-smoking, kite-flying stranger investigating the mystery of his disappeared son; to Nadine, the reserved, enchanting wife of the vanished man; to Tom, a journalist and Virgil's oldest friend; and various members of the Pea family who must confront tragedies of their own. Into this community returns a shimmering prodigal son who may hold the key to reviving their town.

Several group members offered that they felt the beginning of the book was difficult to settle into, noting that its first few chapters were a bit slow and monotonous. Most agreed that it at times also became difficult to keep the cast of characters straight throughout the novel. Though it wasn’t unanimous, the majority of the group found the aspect of kites and kite flying an interesting and charming addition to the story, some wondered aloud if the stated appeal was really for the kites, or instead for Rune, an endearing character featured in the book. Lastly, it was evident that the group very much likes Mr. Enger’s writing style; he seems to have an endless arsenal of extraordinary adjectives, and it was mentioned several times that his first novel, Peace Like A River, was a superb read and comes highly recommended.  

At the end of every book club discussion we ask three questions and track the average answers:

Would we recommend this to another book club for discussion?
"YES"
Would we recommend this to a friend to read?
"YES"
Rate the book 1-4 stars with 1 being the lowest rating:
2.8 stars (it mostly scored 3 stars, with a couple 2 stars mixed in)