Third Willow

Third Willow is a very easy book to immediately get into and following along with. Lenore does an awesome job bringing each of the characters to life. The struggles that each of the children and their families deal with, were as relevant in the 50's as they are today.

This book was a definite page turner, filled with interesting details. It was very descriptive and kept me engaged up until the very end. I would highly recommend this book for teenagers as well as adults.

This book is for readers who want to think and experience real life, not escape. Don't pick it up thinking it will be a frivolous childhood romp in the woods. Far from it. And yet the winsomeness of childhood is there intermingled with the tension and turmoil of impending teenage years.

For those who remember the angst of pre-pubescence, Third Willow, will have a familiar feel. The confusion of crossing that threshold from child to young adult is respectfully and sensitively portrayed through the hearts and minds of four young friends – Hap, Patsy, Beah, and Raz. These wise-beyond-their-years preteens spend the summer of 1954 hanging out as much as possible, away from their parents’ strongholds, on the outskirts of a rural Nebraska town. They grow up in a hurry as they wrestle with the adult problems affecting each of their lives. Lenore Skomal’s novel tackles heavy topics with honesty as the children grapple with complicated issues such as religious conviction, sexuality, prejudice, divorce, domestic violence, the effects of war, truth, loyalty and self-esteem -- universal themes as relevant today as they were some 60 years ago. There are more questions than answers posed in this book, superbly crafted by Skomal, leaving room for readers to apply their own experiences and to formulate – just as the children must – their own opinions.

Lenore Skomal's novel, "Third Willow" is a thought provoking tale of the bonds of friendship of pre-adolescents Patsy, Hap, Beah and Raz. It takes place in the mid 1950s in a small Nebraska town during an oppressively hot summer. Each child is dealing with his or her own very real major issue at home and finds escape and a shared camaraderie with the other misunderstood kids under the shade of the willows on the outskirts of town. Ms. Skomal does a remarkable job of character development of the children. She delves into their innermost thoughts with the skill of a brain surgeon. Their musings were presented as very real and believable. But as with many friendships, sometimes they must undergo a test. Such is the case here. And it's a doozy! Will the bond that these pre-teens forged be strong enough to withstand a major blow at such an uncertain age? It's a blow that even the oldest and best of friends would be hard pressed to survive. You WILL want to read this book to find out.
As a side note, I found it fascinating that so many topics that we see and hear about in the news today were interwoven into the plot of a novel set in the 1950s, making this a relevant read for the 21st century. Mental illness, same sex couples, alcoholism, gun violence, religious intolerance - just to name a few.
I loved the vivid descriptions of the era! I wasn't alive in the 1950s, but with Ms. Skomal's "portrait with words" I felt like I had time traveled.
In summary, I thoroughly enjoyed this well written, thought provoking and sensitive book and I would highly recommend it to my friends.

Third Willow is not a novel to rush through, but one to savor and linger over, mull and muse upon, and maybe enjoy with a rush of nostalgia and a tinge of wistfulness that'll remind you of a time that maybe is long past, yet just as precious today for its memories - or one you're still living through in some small way or the other, as you continue the ongoing struggle of "growing up" every day.

This book pulls you in and engages you in the story. Within a few pages, you'll no longer be reading a book. You'll be sharing the lives and dreams of Patsy and Hap, then Beah and Raz.

Centered around a majestic willow tree in a lovely remote part of Nebraska, the story revolves abount a tiny community and 4 of its young inhabitants.

You're subliminally aware that the tale is set in the 50s, in the aftermath of the Korean War, but you are more consciously involved in the lives, thoughts and pre-teen angst of the four young protagonists - which timelessly reflect the pain and pleasure of growing up and coming of age.

Third Willow traces their transition from childhood to adolescence through a series of circumstances, events and philosophies, doing this in an empathic and sympathetic fashion that will have you rooting for your favorite person, issue or challenge. And there are plenty, ranging from sexuality to spiritualism, religion to homosexuality, struggles of being honest and fair and loyal and morals in other words, the typical growing up pain all of us have felt as youngsters, and our little ones will feel as they grow up too.