Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Rindo (Breathing Lake Superior) delivers a spellbinding story of an eight-foot-tall sports star from a humble Wisconsin Amish community. Gabriel Fisher is born weighing 18 pounds and measuring 27 inches. His mother, Rachel, who was pregnant out of wedlock and shunned by her Amish community, dies not long after giving birth to him in a pickup with help from veterinarian Thomas Kennedy. Raised by his grandparents, Gabriel has a soothing effect on farm animals, which attracts Thomas's attention, and he brings the young boy with him on house calls. However, where Gabriel particularly stands out is in his athletic prowess, first in baseball and then, as a teenager, on the football field, prompting him to leave his community to attend college on an athletic scholarship. After an injury, Gabriel pivots to professional wrestling. Through it all, Gabriel continues to grow in both physical size and professional stature as he navigates life in the spotlight. Rindo spins an exciting chronicle of Gabriel's athletic ability and the modern world's mesmerizing pull on his cloistered hero, but he also exhibits a subtle touch, setting the stage for a surprising and moving final plot twist. This will linger in readers' minds. Agent: Julia Livshin, Julia Livshin LLC. (Sept.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
Rindo (Breathing Lake Superior) poignantly shares the "tall" tale of Gabriel Fisher. Born weighing 18 pounds, Gabriel entered the world in the back of a pickup truck. His birth was marked by tragedy--his mother, a young, unmarried Amish woman, died bringing him into the world. From the beginning, there's something extraordinary about Gabriel. It isn't just his immense size that stands out, but his heart too. The people of Lakota, WI--a town where Amish residents live side by side with secular ones--are drawn to this child, a gentle giant with an uncanny connection to both animals and people. After the brother who partly raised him dies, Gabriel is taken in by his Amish grandparents and grows up within their close-knit, traditional community. But his extraordinary athleticism and immense physical strength eventually lead him to leave behind the sheltered world of his youth. Told through the voices of the people who loved and cared for him, Gabriel's story unfolds in powerful and unexpected ways. His brief life is filled with moments of joy but also deep sorrow. VERDICT An emotional and beautifully rendered story of love and loss, faith and family secrets, longing, and the unbreakable spirit of a remarkable person.--Margie Ticknor
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A giant boy with colossal gifts is born in a Wisconsin Amish community. Rindo's second novel, following several story collections, reveals a writer at the height of his powers. Its title comes from an Emily Dickinson poem; at the center of the tale is a well-worn book of Dickinson's work. Passed to an Amish woman, Hannah Fisher, in a cedar chest of her mother's things she receives when the older woman dies, it represents a secret rebellion against the strictures of their faith via Dickinson's humanist spirituality. As the book opens, Hannah's daughter, Rachel, is in the throes of labor, and her 17-year-old son, Jasper, brings her to the local veterinarian, Thomas Kennedy, for help, but she dies shortly after delivering an 18-pound infant, Gabriel. Rachel has never named the father of either boy, and she's long been excommunicated for keeping her silence. Thomas Kennedy and Hannah Fisher are among a group of four residents of rural Lakota, Wisconsin, who pass the narrative torch in this gorgeously constructed and written novel. The other two are Billy Walton, the proprietor of the local bar and sponsor of the T-ball team where Gabriel will begin his protean sports career, and Trey Beathard, a disgraced college football coach who takes over the local high school program and becomes one of Gabriel's mentors. Each of them has a unique voice; Hannah's is particularly beautiful and captivating: "Each morning since my baptism at age seventeen I have awakened from the soft death of sleep, and my first thought, always, has been: Lord, Thy will be done. I do not say it for my own credit. It has not been easy." And it's only going to get harder as her grandson Gabriel's life unfolds. Gabriel himself is a mythic creation: Suckled on goat milk, he has a profound bond with animals, and his legend grows as quickly as he does, reaching a size of almost 9 feet and 600 pounds. Rindo's writing about animals and nature, about Amish faith, about art and sports--including pro wrestling!--is extraordinary. At the heart of his concerns is the battle between good and evil as expressed in human kindness and human weakness, embodied in unforgettable characters. With its profound portraits of both Amish and secular characters and their luminously real community, this is a must-read. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
