Plainsong by Kent Haruf

Plainsong by Kent Haruf
This was such an excellent book. Amazed that it took me so long to find it. Literary, character driven, with a real sense of place. I savored the book as the prose was beautiful. I see that it was recommended for YA, but I would say the upper grades of high school would be better. Some serious issues were addressed. Basically it is the story of a father, his two sons, a teacher, a pregnant student, and two older bachelors whose lives intersect to create an extended family. They all grow up in the novel as they face new challenges and become much deeper for it. I especially liked the story of Victoria Roubideaux, the pregnant teenager dealing with the rejection of her mother. She has to sort out how she really feels about the father of her child and how she is going to care for this child that she anticipates with joy and fear. She is wise beyond her years. Tender is the adjective that I would use to describe the author's attitude toward his characters. A good story, with further stories in his later books about Holt, Colorado..