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The Wake of Forgiveness
by Bruce Machart
Published: 2010-10-21
Hardcover : 320 pages
Hardcover : 320 pages
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On a moonless Texas night in 1895, an ambitious young landowner suffers the loss of “the only woman he’s ever been fond of” when his wife dies during childbirth with the couple’s fourth boy, Karel. From an early age Karel proves so talented on horseback that his father enlists him ...
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Introduction
On a moonless Texas night in 1895, an ambitious young landowner suffers the loss of “the only woman he’s ever been fond of” when his wife dies during childbirth with the couple’s fourth boy, Karel. From an early age Karel proves so talented on horseback that his father enlists him to ride in acreage-staked horseraces against his neighbors. But Karel is forever haunted by thoughts of the mother he never knew, by the bloodshot blame in his father’s eyes, and permanently marked by the yoke he and his brothers are forced to wear to plow the family fields. Confident only in the saddle, Karel is certain that the horse “wants the whip the same way he wants his pop’s strap . . . the closest he ever gets to his father’s touch.” In the winter of 1910, Karel rides in the ultimate high-stakes race against a powerful Spanish patriarch and his alluring daughters. Hanging in the balance are his father’s fortune, his brother’s futures, and his own fate. Fourteen years later, with the stake of the race still driven hard between him and his brothers, Karel is finally forced to dress the wounds of his past and to salvage the tattered fabric of his family.
Reminiscent of Kent Haruf’s portrayals of hope amidst human heartbreak and Cormac McCarthy’s finely hewn evocations of the American Southwest, Bruce Machart’s striking debut is as well wrought as it is riveting. It compels us to consider the inescapable connections between sons and their mothers, between landscape and family, and between remembrance and redemption.
Reminiscent of Kent Haruf’s portrayals of hope amidst human heartbreak and Cormac McCarthy’s finely hewn evocations of the American Southwest, Bruce Machart’s striking debut is as well wrought as it is riveting. It compels us to consider the inescapable connections between sons and their mothers, between landscape and family, and between remembrance and redemption.
Editorial Review
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On a moonless Texas night in 1895, an ambitious young landowner suffers the loss of "the only woman he's ever been fond of" when his wife dies during childbirth with the couple's fourth boy, Karel. From an early age Karel proves so talented on horseback that his father enlists him to ride in acreage-staked horseraces against his neighbors. But Karel is forever haunted by thoughts of the mother he never knew, by the bloodshot blame in his father's eyes, and permanently marked by the yoke he and his brothers are forced to wear to plow the family fields. Confident only in the saddle, Karel is certain that the horse "wants the whip the same way he wants his pop's strap . . . the closest he ever gets to his father's touch." In the winter of 1910, Karel rides in the ultimate high-stakes race against a powerful Spanish patriarch and his alluring daughters. Hanging in the balance are his father's fortune, his brother's futures, and his own fate. Fourteen years later, with the stake of the race still driven hard between him and his brothers, Karel is finally forced to dress the wounds of his past and to salvage the tattered fabric of his family.
Reminiscent of Kent Haruf's portrayals of hope amidst human heartbreak and Cormac McCarthy's finely hewn evocations of the American Southwest, Bruce Machart's striking debut is as well wrought as it is riveting. It compels us to consider the inescapable connections between sons and their mothers, between landscape and family, and between remembrance and redemption.
On a moonless Texas night in 1895, an ambitious young landowner suffers the loss of "the only woman he's ever been fond of" when his wife dies during childbirth with the couple's fourth boy, Karel. From an early age Karel proves so talented on horseback that his father enlists him to ride in acreage-staked horseraces against his neighbors. But Karel is forever haunted by thoughts of the mother he never knew, by the bloodshot blame in his father's eyes, and permanently marked by the yoke he and his brothers are forced to wear to plow the family fields. Confident only in the saddle, Karel is certain that the horse "wants the whip the same way he wants his pop's strap . . . the closest he ever gets to his father's touch." In the winter of 1910, Karel rides in the ultimate high-stakes race against a powerful Spanish patriarch and his alluring daughters. Hanging in the balance are his father's fortune, his brother's futures, and his own fate. Fourteen years later, with the stake of the race still driven hard between him and his brothers, Karel is finally forced to dress the wounds of his past and to salvage the tattered fabric of his family.
Reminiscent of Kent Haruf's portrayals of hope amidst human heartbreak and Cormac McCarthy's finely hewn evocations of the American Southwest, Bruce Machart's striking debut is as well wrought as it is riveting. It compels us to consider the inescapable connections between sons and their mothers, between landscape and family, and between remembrance and redemption.
Amazon Exclusive: Hannah Tinti Reviews The Wake of Forgiveness
Hannah Tinti is the author of The Good Thief and Animal Crackers. Read her guest review of The Wake of Forgiveness:
Iâ??ve been a fan of Bruce Machartâ??s work since 2004, when I read his story "What Youâ??re Walking Around Without" for consideration at One Story magazine. His writing bowled me over with its skill, gripping narrative and pure emotion. At the time, Bruce said he was working on a novel. It took six years to get here, but boy was it worth the wait.
In The Wake of Forgiveness, Bruce Machart tells a story that stretches wide across the Texas landscape. Set at the turn of the century, it follows Karel and his three brothers, whose father drives them hard, yoking his sons as he plows the fields until they all carry a permanent mark on their shoulders. But their father is also a gambler, and he drops his fortune on a high-stakes horse race with Karel as rider. This moonlit race changes their lives forever, especially Karelâ??s, as he loses not only his father and brothers but his first love, a dark Spanish beauty. Now, fourteen years later, he is forced to bridge the divide with his brothers that opened on that fateful night. This is the gritty world of horses and men, of fathers and sons. Bruce Machart writes with a richness that completely unfolds time and place, leaving behind its own beautiful wake of remembrance, inheritance, and the unbreakable bonds of family.
Amazon Exclusive: Discussion Questions for Wake of Forgiveness
1) 1. The book opens with Karelâ??s birth, which is also the occasion of his motherâ??s death. How does this change the family dynamic? How does it introduce the themes of guilt and shame and how do you see these themes continue throughout the book?
2) 2. In the bookâ??s opening pages, we see Sr. Villasenor establish himself at the local bank. When he is condescended to by the banker, how does he get his revenge? How are Villasenor and Skala different sorts of men? How are they the same?
3) 3. Discuss Karelâ??s relationship with his father. Vaclav never holds his infant son; later, the narrator says, "Karel wanted his popâ??s strap, the stinging and unambiguous urgency of its attention, and, for Karel, the closest he got to his fatherâ??s touch" (p. 20). Where else do you see the correlation of violence with affection? How else does this correlation play out in Karelâ??s life?
4) On pages 30â??31, Karel recounts a nightmare in which his father is kicked by a horse, then a horseshoe is nailed to his hand. What does this image of crucifixion signify in the story? Vaclav is far from Christ-like, but what sacrifice happens in the book? What redemption?
5) Karel is haunted by the absence of his mother. How does he seek maternal love? How does he confuse maternal love with something else?
6) On page 43, Karel kicks a pregnant cow. Why does he do this? How do we know this act is premeditated? What sorts of connections might Karel have between violence and money, or value? Where would those have come from?
7) The structure of the book is not strictly chronological. Why do you think the author chose to structure the book this way? How do the characters unfold through this broken narrative? What is gained by seeing Karel and the other characters at different points in their lives?
8) Does Karel feel bonded with the Knedlik boys because of the way their fathers died? Was that a reliable trust? When you finally read the scene of Vaclavâ??s death, is it what you expected? Does this change how you feel about Karel?
9) Discuss the pivotal horserace between Karel and Graciela. What made this race different than any other race? How is this race different than the one Karel ran against the Dalton boy earlier in the book? What are we to understand about Karelâ??s sportsmanship?
10) After the race, during the fight that ensues between the Skala men, what does the author mean when he says the fight was "flawless in its wickedness"? Why does it feel like this fight was fated? What was gained, and what lost, in the fight?
11) There are a few short passages in the book told from the point of view of Father Carew. Why do you think the author chose to switch the narration for these few moments? What do we gain from his perspective?
12) Raymond Knedlik says to Karel, "'You ainâ??t got any brothers, Skala, unless youâ??re talking about me and Joe here. Them others wonâ??t claim you.'" (page 293). What does Karel think of this claim? What does being a brother mean to Karel? What do you think makes men into brothers?
13) The title of the book is â??The Wake of Forgiveness.â?? Who is forgiven? Why? What comes in the â??wake of forgivenessâ???
Copyright © 2010 Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Discussion questions written by Erin Edmison.
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