A Novel
by Liz MooreWhen a teenager vanishes from her Adirondack summer camp, two worlds collide.
Early morning, August 1975: a camp counselor discovers an empty bunk. Its occupant, Barbara Van Laar, has gone missing. Barbara isn't just any thirteen-year-old: she's the daughter of the family that owns the summer camp and employs most of the region's residents. And this isn't the first time a Van Laar child has disappeared. Barbara's older brother similarly vanished fourteen years ago, never to be found.
As a panicked search begins, a thrilling drama unfolds. Chasing down the layered secrets of the Van Laar family and the blue-collar community working in its shadow, Moore's multi-threaded story invites readers into a rich and gripping dynasty of secrets and second chances. It is Liz Moore's most ambitious and wide-reaching novel yet.
The narrative structure Liz Moore employs in The God of the Woods is intricate; non-sequential chapters bounce among several points between 1950, when the children's mother Alice first meets their father Peter, and 1975, as the investigation into a missing child's whereabouts progresses. Chapters are also written from the viewpoint of different characters, so diverse voices and perspectives are explored. And finally, the plot concerns not only two separate mysteries but abounds with subplots, examining themes such as family dysfunction, class structure, and the roles of women during these decades. Although this sounds horribly complex, the author is so skilled that one never feels lost and not one line feels unnecessary or out of place. This is an engrossing mystery that expands the genre into character study and a discussion of social norms. The book is highly recommended for those looking for a top-notch summer mystery, as well as anyone interested in an outstanding work of literary fiction...continued
Full Review
(586 words)
(Reviewed by Kim Kovacs).
Liz Moore's mystery The God of the Woods begins with the disappearance of a girl from fictional Camp Emerson, a summer camp for children in the Adirondack Mountains of New York.
For many children, attending summer camp is a rite of passage. According to a 2023 Newsweek article, there are over 12,000 summer camps across the United States, and some 20 million children—around 40 percent of children ages 6 to 18—attend at least one camp annually. Hundreds of different kinds of experiences are available now, with some catering to outdoor activities, some to arts and crafts, others to learning about potential careers such as robotics or computer programming.
Most historians believe the first summer camp in the United States ...
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