“Cloud Cuckoo Land” by Anthony Doerr

In a book, more challenging than a giant jigsaw and more intricate than an exquisite labyrinth, this beautifully wrought tale connects the stories of Aethon, a poor shepherd on a mythical journey to Cloud Cuckoo Land in an ancient Greek myth,  Seymour, a disturbed young man living with his mother in a rundown trailer in Lakeport, Idaho in 2020,  Zeno, an 83-year-old Korean vet and retired snowplow driver who spends most of his time in the library of that same town, Omeir, a 15^th century Arab peasant with a cleft palate living on a rural farm,  Anna, an orphan in the city of Constantinople in 1459, and Konstance, a 14-year-old girl on a spaceship some time far in the future, traveling to a distant planet.  How the author weaves all this together is mildly frustrating at first but almost without your knowledge, the story draws you in, and takes you on your own spectacular odyssey that is well worth the effort it takes to consume this lengthy, dense, masterpiece of a book.   5 Stars (Don’t miss this if you are able to push through it.)

“The Lincoln Highway” by Amor Towles

 In a book that spans only ten days in the summer of 1954, and eight narrators giving the story their unique perspectives, the novel recounts a hero’s journey of redemption, and explores the meaning of justice, as Emmett, recently released from a juvenile detention facility, embarks on a journey to California with his young brother, Billy, but meets continuing obstacles from two men he met in the detention center who have hatched their own plan for a journey.  Although the story meanders and gets bogged down at times, and the precocious abilities of young Billy seem a little far-fetched, the author delves into the character and strength required of a hero, and likens this modern journey to the ancient journeys of both fictional and real heroes, unfolding an adventure worth experiencing –full of warmth and shock, joy and sorrow, and which invites the reader to vicariously engage in the hero’s quest and root for his success. 5 Stars