Some Luck (Smiley)

Book Reviews
(Starred review.) The saga of an Iowa farm family might not seem like an exciting premise, but Smiley makes it just that, conjuring a world—time, place, people—and an engaging story that makes readers eager to know what happens next. Smiley plans to extend the tale of the Langdon family well into the 21st century; she’s off to a very strong start.
Publishers Weekly


(Starred review.) [A] wide-angle view of mid-century America. Told in beautiful, you-are-there language, the narrative lets ordinary events accumulate to give us a significant feel of life at the time, with the importance and dangers of farming particularly well portrayed. In the end, though, this is the story of parents and children, of hope and disappointment.  —Barbara Hoffert
Library Journal


(Starred review.) Tremendous.... Smiley is a seductive writer in perfect command of every element of language....and she returns to that fertile ground to tell the stories of the Langdons, a clan deeply in accord with the land.... As barbed in her wit as ever, Smiley is also munificently tender....a supremely nuanced portrait of a family spanning three pivotal American decades. It will be on the top of countless to-read lists.—Donna Seaman
Booklist


(Starred review.) [W]hen Rosanna and Walter Langdon look at the 23 people gathered at Thanksgiving in 1948 and "agreed in an instant: something had created itself from nothing," it’s a moment of honest sentiment, honestly earned. An expansive tale showing this generally flinty author in a mellow mood: surprising, but engaging.
Kirkus Reviews