The Painter
By Peter Heller
(Knopf, Hardcover, 9780385352093, May 2014, 384pp.)
The Short of It:
Thoughtfully written novel about anger and loss. Surprisingly deep.
The Rest of It:
What did I expect when I picked this up? I seriously went into it without much knowledge about the story itself and sometimes that is a great way to go into a book. The only thing I knew beforehand, was that I enjoyed Heller’s other novel, The Dog Stars and apparently, that’s not a bad way to choose a book because I really enjoyed this one.
The story is simple. Jim Stegner is sitting in a bar one day when one of its patrons makes an off-color remark about his daughter. Jim, not a man to let such a thing go, shoots the guy and goes to prison for it. Years later, after serving his sentence he chooses not to return to the Santa Fe art scene he left behind. Instead, he heads to rural Colorado to paint in solitude, fly fish and remember the marriage that he once had, and the daughter he lost to drugs.
This quiet novel stays with you long after reading it. Stegner is an interesting guy. He expresses himself through his paintings, but his temper gets him into trouble and when he sees a guy beat a horse on the side of the road, he can’t help but act and of course this starts a chain of events that he cannot ignore. Through it all, the reader is in his head as he ponders his predicament and somehow, he is not the bad guy no matter what he chooses to do. He’s imperfect but at the same time, his actions seem logical which makes him easy to relate to.
The writing is almost poetic. Sometimes, even lyrical in nature. It’s not flowery or overdone but it’s simple and lovely and I remember feeling the same way about The Dog Stars. I kind of dig his style. It’s no-nonsense and yet deep. It’s also a very quick read. I highly recommend it because there is all kinds of stuff to sink your teeth into.
Source: Sent to me by the publisher via Edelweiss.
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.
Book Chatter 
Sounds like a very deep novel!
It is, but not over your head deep. Just gives you plenty to consider while the main character figures out what’s what.
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I like the sound of the story but don’t always like being “in the head” of the protagonist. I still want to give this book a try.
This is a perfect review for a book I have been wondering about.
This sounds like an excellent read. I never did read The Dog Stars. so much I want to read and don’t have time!
I think you’d like The Dog Stars a lot. It had one horrid sex scene, not sure what he was thinking with that one but the story was like The Road but more upbeat. This one had that same haunting quality to it. Something about the way he writes his characters, I imagine. Can’t quite put my finger on it.
I have been a reading fool but only because I blew off everything this week. I ditched a booster club meeting because I just could not imagine me going there late at night 7:30 after working a 12 hour day. Oh, and I actually sat my butt down and wrote three reviews yesterday. Unheard of, these days.
You need to carve a little time out for yourself. Go to bed early and hole up with a good book or sit in a hot bath and read. I did that the other day and it was great.
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Sounds really good. For some reason Heller isn’t on my radar (I have seen his books a lot), but your description of the writing makes me think I would really like his works.
The Dog Stars is in my TBR collection, and so I haven’t given this one much thought just yet. I am glad you enjoyed it, Ti. It does sound good.
Yeah I second your thoughts; I enjoyed this novel too. I wondered if the main character or author is a little into himself much … as the cool outdoor artist guy but I still ended up liking it. And it stayed with me
Funny, because I felt the same away about the main character in his other book, The Dog Stars. Maybe he puts a little bit of himself in his books.
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