The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig

An excellent book. Not a prize winner, except that it was named a notable book by the ALS. It's deceptive too, since the ending was a surprise to me. That doesn't happen often, since I am such a jaded, experienced reader! The middle section might drag just a little, and the author makes a lot of the one-room schoolhouse setting, which borders on nostalgia. In fact, the little bits of nostalgia are the only detracting elements of the novel. I highly recommend it.