The O’Briens, by Peter Behrens

Although this family saga stretches from the late 1880’s to 1960, the central character is Joe O’Brien, the eldest son of Irish immigrants struggling to survive in the “bush” of eastern Canada.  When his father dies, and his mother marries an alcoholic fiddler, he takes charge of the survival of his brothers and sisters.  Through hard work, beginning with a small timber business and continuing as a contractor for the railroads being pushed through western Canada, he rises to a position of wealth and influence.  His marriage to a strong and independent woman shapes the next generations.  Spanning the Gilded age thorough the post-World War II era, the novel is an engaging history of its times and the characters are well-drawn and memorable.  However, I’m not sure that the glowing front page review in the NYTimes Book Review was justified.  A similar generational novel written by a woman, and there are many like this book, might have not seemed all that exceptional.   384 pp.