A heartfelt and enjoyable story with a welcome and genuine sense of place.
But then I read a book like Raft of Stars , and I am again filled with wonder. Not just at nature–at rivers, forests, and fields–but at my children themselves….That folks such as Andrew Graff write novels like this is, for me, a sign of great hope.
I had no idea people wrote books like Andrew J. Graff’s Raft of Stars anymore—a rousing adventure yarn full of danger and heart and humor and characters worth worrying about. It’s as if, after observing the deplorable state we’re all in right now, the author took it upon himself to raise our collective spirits. Bravo!
RAFT OF STARS is a dark, dreamy, adrenaline-spiked escape into [the] Midwest wilderness. . . . RAFT OF STARS is both a plot-driven wilderness adventure and a fragile coming-of-age story. Graff captures the pure connection between friends on the cusp of adulthood, struggling to love parents with sometimes-unforgivable imperfections, and the world created by his powerful, thrumming style is not so much a setting as it is a star-shot forest dreamscape of cedar trees, prowling coyotes, and sun-bleached scarecrows made of bone.”
"Graff has crafted not only an adventure story with a warm heart at its center, but a whole town of characters for readers to fall in love with."
★ 12/01/2020
DEBUT In 1990s northern Wisconsin, 10-year-old Fischer "Fish" Branson and Dale "Bread" Breadwin flee into the woods after believing that Fish has killed Bread's abusive father, eventually constructing a raft to carry them down a dangerous river. They're followed by four adults frantic to save them: woebegone sheriff Cal, newly arrived in Wisconsin and beginning to doubt his calling; gas station attendant Tiffany, a poet and outsider secretly longing for Cal; Fish's mother, a fierce Pentecostal not above cursing when she rides the rapids; and Fish's tough, wilderness-smart grandfather. The characters are expertly drawn in their shifting relationships, and the two boys' closeness and bravery are especially affecting. Realistically, they have moments of genuine tension in a narrative that is both an engaging adventure and a profound reflection on human bonding, what it means to be a man (and a good one), and the importance of persevering. Indeed, some iteration of the word hope appears nearly 100 times in the book, yet the result is never treacly; facing the life issues examined here in an unforgiving if beautifully rendered wilderness is no easy feat. VERDICT Highly recommended, whether you want literate thrills or thoughtful, affirming meditation.—Barbara Hoffert, Library Journal
2020-12-25
Rural Wisconsin in the mid-1990s is the setting for Graff’s memorable story of loss, violence, adventure, and redemption. Ten-year-old Fischer “Fish” Branson, spending the summer on his grandfather’s farm, knows his friend Bread has too many bruises. When he witnesses Bread’s father beating the boy, Fish reaches for the man’s gun and fires it. In the shooting’s aftermath, the boys flee into the great north woods and build a raft so they can ride the river and escape the adult world. But Fish hasn’t told Bread the truth about their final destination. Their pursuers are trying to outrun their own sorrows, too: Teddy, Fish’s grandfather, a stoic Korean War veteran; Cal, the town sheriff, who doesn’t want to be sheriff anymore; Miranda, Fish’s wilderness-savvy mother, who has suffered her own losses; and Tiffany, a purple-haired free spirit who works at a gas station, secretly longs for Cal, and writes poetry in her spare time. Awaiting them all are dangerous rapids no raft can survive. The action sequences are exciting, though the reader has to overlook a few unlikely scenarios and coincidences to follow this journey (why would Cal, who has no experience in the Wisconsin woods, take off on horseback without attempting to organize a larger, more efficient search party?). Still, Graff’s characters have heart to spare, and his affection for this rugged part of the country is infectious. His coming-of-age story offers us nostalgia and escape, and he reminds us that while freedom can be elusive, the people who love you always make your life worth living.
A nostalgic coming-of-age story that plays out in a wild, intriguing setting.
[An] exquisitely crafted novel about two 10-year-old boys on the lam on a river raft. . . . The art and craft of this narrative, apparent from the first page with its sublime constellations of images, offers brutal beauty, the glinting edge of truth, and the possibility of redemption for the fifth-grade boys, and also for the adults chasing them. Finding their way through the thick, gnarled woods and along the perilous river, both children and adults show they can transcend the thicket of confusion surrounding their personal circumstances and emerge toward more clarity.” — Boston Globe
“Andrew J. Graff’s engrossing, largehearted debut novel, Raft of Stars , is a book with a distinctly Rousseauian vibe. It is the story of what happens when two 10-year-old boys flee into the northern Wisconsin woods and how they, and their various adult pursuers, don’t merely survive, but shed their landlocked inhibitions and become better, bigger versions of themselves. . .Despite brushes with danger and death — roaring rapids, charging bears, loaded rifles, hunger — they don’t turn inward, nor do they turn against one another. No one goes Lord of the Flies . Instead, they do what they haven’t felt free to do in civilization: open up and cry, reveal their regrets and fears and needs.” — The New York Times Book Review
“Outdoorsy tales like this, from Hemingway’s early Michigan stories to James Dickey’s Deliverance on down, typically use woods and waterways as proving grounds for masculinity. But Graff...wants to unravel some of the expectations of the genre. Nature, here, isn’t impressed with masculinity at all, and it’s prepared to smash machismo against its rocks along with anything else. . . Graff writes exquisitely about the wilderness,...[and] recognizes that his main job is to deliver a gripping adventure tale, which the concluding chapters offer plenty of — dangerous rapids leading to life-threatening waterfalls, menacing black bears and coyotes.” — Washington Post
“The story will beg you to grab the person beside you, tilt the cover toward them, and ask, "Have you read this yet?" It will inevitably gift you a glorious post-book reading haze, a fog following you from room to room, trailed by a story you can't get out of your mind. Raft of Stars is a clarion call to the wild softness in all of us. It is a book to read, and read, and read again." — Country Living
“I had no idea people wrote books like Andrew J. Graff’s Raft of Stars anymore—a rousing adventure yarn full of danger and heart and humor and characters worth worrying about. It’s as if, after observing the deplorable state we’re all in right now, the author took it upon himself to raise our collective spirits. Bravo!” — Richard Russo, author of Empire Falls and Chances Are...
“An adventurous tale of misfit characters and a humble riverboat.” — Parade (“A Must-Read Book of Spring”)
“A heartfelt and enjoyable story with a welcome and genuine sense of place.” — Milwaukee Magazine
“The characters are expertly drawn in their shifting relationships . . . Both an engaging adventure and a profound reflection on human bonding, what it means to be a man (and a good one), and the importance of persevering. . . . Highly recommended, whether you want literate thrills or thoughtful, affirming meditation.” — Library Journal (starred review)
“But then I read a book like Raft of Stars , and I am again filled with wonder. Not just at nature–at rivers, forests, and fields–but at my children themselves….That folks such as Andrew Graff write novels like this is, for me, a sign of great hope.” — Front Porch Republic
“Impressive . . . [Graff’s] background as a hunter and a hiker gives him plenty of raw material to make the natural trials faced by Fish and Bread and their trackers realistic and, at times, harrowing. Besides whitewater, there’s violent weather, bears and the uncertainty of who will find the boys, if anyone, and when.” — St. Louis Post-Dispatch
“RAFT OF STARS is a dark, dreamy, adrenaline-spiked escape into [the] Midwest wilderness. . . . RAFT OF STARS is both a plot-driven wilderness adventure and a fragile coming-of-age story. Graff captures the pure connection between friends on the cusp of adulthood, struggling to love parents with sometimes-unforgivable imperfections, and the world created by his powerful, thrumming style is not so much a setting as it is a star-shot forest dreamscape of cedar trees, prowling coyotes, and sun-bleached scarecrows made of bone.” — Popsugar
“You’ll be so busy savoring this deliciously-written tale that the only thing you’ll truly care about is that this book lingers, like a soft summer night, so grab Raft of Stars and run with it.” — Yankton Daily Press
“The wilderness odyssey that shapes Graff’s rewarding coming-of-age debut has a timeless, archetypal resonance. . . . Graff depicts the harsh Northwoods setting and his misfit characters’ inner lives with equal skill. The dynamic quest narrative offers plenty of rich moments.” — Publishers Weekly
"Rural Wisconsin in the mid-1990s is the setting for Graff’s memorable story of loss, violence, adventure, and redemption. . . . Graff’s characters have heart to spare, and his affection for this rugged part of the country is infectious. His coming-of-age story offers us nostalgia and escape, and he reminds us that while freedom can be elusive, the people who love you always make your life worth living.” — Kirkus Reviews
“Reminiscent of stories like Stand By Me and Have You Seen Luis Velez?, Graff's debut novel will enchant fans of Chris Cleave and Melissa Bank. Graff's narrative voice is lyrical, with a Southern Gothic edge that fits surprisingly well with the Wisconsin Northwoods setting. Exploring the necessity of the stories we tell ourselves to survive, Raft of Stars is a clever, compelling coming-of-age tale.” — Booklist
"Graff has crafted not only an adventure story with a warm heart at its center, but a whole town of characters for readers to fall in love with." — J. Ryan Stradal, author of The Lager Queen of Minnesota
“In ruggedly beautiful prose, and with a deep affection for his damaged, but always loveable characters, Graff delivers a novel with real heart and soul. An authentic look into the heartland of America, into one-parent households, where mothers and grandparents are supporting the next generation while fathers are either absentee, or should be. Like a barrel going over a waterfalls, Raft of Stars sweeps its reader downstream, and fast. Hold on for the ride.” — Nickolas Butler, author of Little Faith
[An] exquisitely crafted novel about two 10-year-old boys on the lam on a river raft. . . . The art and craft of this narrative, apparent from the first page with its sublime constellations of images, offers brutal beauty, the glinting edge of truth, and the possibility of redemption for the fifth-grade boys, and also for the adults chasing them. Finding their way through the thick, gnarled woods and along the perilous river, both children and adults show they can transcend the thicket of confusion surrounding their personal circumstances and emerge toward more clarity.
An adventurous tale of misfit characters and a humble riverboat.
Parade (“A Must-Read Book of Spring”)
Outdoorsy tales like this, from Hemingway’s early Michigan stories to James Dickey’s Deliverance on down, typically use woods and waterways as proving grounds for masculinity. But Graff...wants to unravel some of the expectations of the genre. Nature, here, isn’t impressed with masculinity at all, and it’s prepared to smash machismo against its rocks along with anything else. . . Graff writes exquisitely about the wilderness,...[and] recognizes that his main job is to deliver a gripping adventure tale, which the concluding chapters offer plenty of — dangerous rapids leading to life-threatening waterfalls, menacing black bears and coyotes.”
Impressive . . . [Graff’s] background as a hunter and a hiker gives him plenty of raw material to make the natural trials faced by Fish and Bread and their trackers realistic and, at times, harrowing. Besides whitewater, there’s violent weather, bears and the uncertainty of who will find the boys, if anyone, and when.
Andrew J. Graff’s engrossing, largehearted debut novel, Raft of Stars , is a book with a distinctly Rousseauian vibe. It is the story of what happens when two 10-year-old boys flee into the northern Wisconsin woods and how they, and their various adult pursuers, don’t merely survive, but shed their landlocked inhibitions and become better, bigger versions of themselves. . .Despite brushes with danger and death — roaring rapids, charging bears, loaded rifles, hunger — they don’t turn inward, nor do they turn against one another. No one goes Lord of the Flies . Instead, they do what they haven’t felt free to do in civilization: open up and cry, reveal their regrets and fears and needs.
The New York Times Book Review
The story will beg you to grab the person beside you, tilt the cover toward them, and ask, "Have you read this yet?" It will inevitably gift you a glorious post-book reading haze, a fog following you from room to room, trailed by a story you can't get out of your mind. Raft of Stars is a clarion call to the wild softness in all of us. It is a book to read, and read, and read again."
Outdoorsy tales like this, from Hemingway’s early Michigan stories to James Dickey’s Deliverance on down, typically use woods and waterways as proving grounds for masculinity. But Graff...wants to unravel some of the expectations of the genre. Nature, here, isn’t impressed with masculinity at all, and it’s prepared to smash machismo against its rocks along with anything else. . . Graff writes exquisitely about the wilderness,...[and] recognizes that his main job is to deliver a gripping adventure tale, which the concluding chapters offer plenty of — dangerous rapids leading to life-threatening waterfalls, menacing black bears and coyotes.”
The story will beg you to grab the person beside you, tilt the cover toward them, and ask, "Have you read this yet?" It will inevitably gift you a glorious post-book reading haze, a fog following you from room to room, trailed by a story you can't get out of your mind. Raft of Stars is a clarion call to the wild softness in all of us. It is a book to read, and read, and read again."
An adventurous tale of misfit characters and a humble riverboat.
Parade (“A Must-Read Book of Spring”)
Reminiscent of stories like Stand By Me and Have You Seen Luis Velez?, Graff's debut novel will enchant fans of Chris Cleave and Melissa Bank. Graff's narrative voice is lyrical, with a Southern Gothic edge that fits surprisingly well with the Wisconsin Northwoods setting. Exploring the necessity of the stories we tell ourselves to survive, Raft of Stars is a clever, compelling coming-of-age tale.
In ruggedly beautiful prose, and with a deep affection for his damaged, but always loveable characters, Graff delivers a novel with real heart and soul. An authentic look into the heartland of America, into one-parent households, where mothers and grandparents are supporting the next generation while fathers are either absentee, or should be. Like a barrel going over a waterfalls, Raft of Stars sweeps its reader downstream, and fast. Hold on for the ride.”
You’ll be so busy savoring this deliciously-written tale that the only thing you’ll truly care about is that this book lingers, like a soft summer night, so grab Raft of Stars and run with it.
Reminiscent of stories like Stand By Me and Have You Seen Luis Velez?, Graff's debut novel will enchant fans of Chris Cleave and Melissa Bank. Graff's narrative voice is lyrical, with a Southern Gothic edge that fits surprisingly well with the Wisconsin Northwoods setting. Exploring the necessity of the stories we tell ourselves to survive, Raft of Stars is a clever, compelling coming-of-age tale.
