I stood and watched the river lift out of itself into a soft white stream that floated up and settled around the necks of the mountains like a giant feather boa. The quivering stars on the black glass surface sank away into the white haze, and before I knew it, the river's ghost was overhead.
Sarahlee Lawrence left her parents' ranch in the Oregon interior to chase adventure on rivers around the world. But her high-adrenaline fling with rushing water also made her homesick for the high desert and the people she had left behind. River House is a memoir of her love affair with rivers and the epiphany that led her to return home and build a cabin the hard way on her family's ranch. It's also an exploration of the conflicting relationships she and her parents have with land, water, and each other.
Lawrence writes beautifully, especially about place. Her descriptions of austere landscapes, exotic rivers, and even her neighbors' homes are like a salve that soothes the windburn of the distraction-emergency economy. Reading River House resonated with my growing desire to build a small home, and Lawrence's determination to build in minimalist style while working manual labor to pay for the building materials is an inspiring example.
Her story also reflected my own lust for adventure, which eventually ripened into a desire for a more rooted and deliberate lifestyle. I admire her dedication to taking on the hard and lonely work of the family ranch—a fate many would have run away from in search of opportunity or distraction. Lawrence clearly values community and has a strong sense of responsibility.
In his forward to The Curve of Time, by M. Wylie Blanchet, Timothy Egan wrote that "any book of travel and adventure, no matter what the undertaking, ultimately depends on how the author wears as a companion." Lawrence is a great companion, whether she's sharing her faults as a young idealistic adventurer, or wrangling a massive chainsaw on the frozen Oregon hardpan. River House is an unpretentious ode to living deliberately, and a beautiful story of adventure, place, and self-reliance.
Thanks to Dan Milnor for the recommendation.