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Gulf Today
16-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Gulf Today
Wally Lamb explores human cruelty and grace in prison with `The River is Waiting'
In Wally Lamb's new novel, "The River Is Waiting," Corby has lost his job as a commercial artist and has developed a secret addiction to alcohol and pills, setting him on a dangerous path that leads to an unfathomable tragedy. Corby starts staying at home during the day with his twin toddlers -- one boy and one girl -- while his wife works as the family's sole breadwinner. Lying to his spouse that he's looking for a job, he starts his mornings drinking hard liquor mixed with his prescription pills for anxiety, leaving him incapable of properly caring for the children he loves. A tragic mix up one morning results in the death of Corby's young son when he accidentally drives over the boy in their driveway. Devastated by the loss of little Niko, Corby now also faces a three-year prison sentence for involuntary manslaughter. "The River Is Waiting" is Lamb's first novel in nine years and a new chance to explore human imperfection as he did in earlier best-selling novels that included "She's Come Undone," about an obese adolescent girl awash in depression, and "I Know This Much Is True," the story of a man fighting to protect his paranoid schizophrenic twin brother. Oprah Winfrey announced Tuesday that she picked "The River Is Waiting" for her book club, the third time she's selected a Lamb book. Almost all the action in Lamb's latest book plays out in prison, an ideal setting to examine the worst and best of humanity. The author taught writing workshops for incarcerated women over two decades, an experience that has helped him to draw a vivid picture of life behind bars, with all its indignities and a few acts of grace. While Corby is tormented by two excessively cruel guards, he also befriends the prison librarian, who shares book recommendations and homemade cookies with inmates who stop by. She even encourages him to paint a mural on the library wall. Several other prisoners also become friends, including a kind cellmate who looks out for him. Corby later tries to look out for someone else - a severely troubled young inmate who shouldn't have been locked up with hardened criminals. During his imprisonment, Corby worries about whether his beloved wife, Emily, and their daughter, Maisie, can ever forgive him. But the experience hasn't left him especially enlightened. At the end, Corby remains mostly a self-centered guy. He's no hero and there's no big epiphany. Like the protagonists in Lamb's earlier novels, he is utterly human, failings and all. Associated Press
Winnipeg Free Press
14-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Winnipeg Free Press
Hard time
'Can a man who caused the death of his child ever atone enough to be forgiven?' American author Wally Lamb asks this in his sixth novel, a heart-shattering saga about addiction, trauma, redemption and the healing power of relationships. Heavy themes, but familiar ones for Lamb. He became a household name with his 1992 novel I Know This Much Is True, (made into a limited series by HBO in 2020 and available on Crave) which follows the story of identical twin brothers, one of whom develops paranoid schizophrenia. Shana Sureck photo Wally Lamb's latest was recently selected as the next read for Oprah's Book Club. Lamb is known for his Dickensian-like storytelling — epic, winding stories, sharp criticism of social ills, plentiful references to topical events and deeply relatable characters. The River Is Waiting contains all these elements. The story opens in 2017 in Lamb's favourite setting: the fictional small-town of Three Rivers, Conn., where we meet 35-year-old Corby Ledbetter. Corby thinks he's doing fine. He may have lost his job, but he'll find another one. In the meantime, he's devoting himself to his beloved wife, Emily, and working as a stay-at-home dad to their two-year-old twins. And even though he sneaks booze and sedatives to cope with his growing stress and depression, he knows he can quit when things get better. As Corby says, 'I'm not too worried about my growing reliance on 'better living through chemistry.' It's just a stopgap until my situation turns around.' Corby keeps telling himself this, even after the morning he takes a double dose of Ativan, chases it with Captain Morgan rum — and backs over his toddler son in the driveway, killing him. Sentenced to prison, Corby finds unexpected fellowship with inmates, including an older mentor and a troubled young man desperately looking for a role model. With the help of his new friends, a warm-hearted prison librarian and his mother's unconditional love, Corby begins to hope that he can conquer his demons, forgive himself and come back to his wife and daughter. The River is Waiting Like fellow American author Matthew Quick, best-known for his 2008 novel The Silver Linings Playbook, Lamb excels at creating characters that are lovable even when not likable. Corby is genuinely grief-stricken and remorseful for killing his son. Most of the time, he seems honest and committed to conquering his addiction. By letting Corby tell the story, readers can't help but sympathize with him and, at times, feel his frustration towards his wife when she refuses to visit, or his mother when she offers well-meaning but unhelpful advice. At other times, Corby comes across as self-righteous, such as when he lashes out at his wife for being protective of their remaining child. 'No matter what's going to happen between Emily and me, I'll fight her tooth and nail if she's going to try to screw with my parental rights. I was a good dad before it happened. She knows that. Doesn't that count for anything?' Corby fumes to himself. During his long career as a teacher and novelist, Lamb also taught creative writing to inmates at York Correctional Institute in Connecticut. He draws on his experience to authentically depict the interior of prison life. Guards treat prisoners kindly or cruelly depending on whim, healing programs are limited or inaccessible, personal phone calls are monitored and inmates learn not to speak up for their own protection. As Corby wryly notes, 'The only thing most of the staff is interested in 'correcting' is a new inmate's assumption that he might be something more than a worthless piece of s–t with a felony conviction and inmate number.' Lamb also dives into the racial injustice of the legal system, with Corby noticing the segregation of inmates by race, and how inmates of colour typically receive longer sentences than white inmates, regardless of the nature of their offences. David Kanigan / Silhouette of bird on shore of lake in Cove Island Park in USA. As Corby realizes after speaking with an older Black inmate: 'For the death of my son, they gave me three years. Lester got 50 years because a judge's daughter lost an arm and, I'm guessing, because she was white.' Weekly A weekly look at what's happening in Winnipeg's arts and entertainment scene. Lamb touches on topical elements from 2017-2023, including Trump followers, economic downturns and the COVID-19 pandemic. Several characters from Lamb's previous novels also make appearances, including psychologist Dr. Patel and nurse Maureen Quirk. Lamb handles the narrative skilfully. While the plot drags at time, this serves to emphasize the monotony of day-to-day life in prison. The River Is Waiting is worth the nine-year wait since Lamb's most recent novel. Kathryne Cardwell is a writer in Treaty One Territory.
USA Today
10-06-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Oprah's June book club pick is here and it's an author she's loved since the '90s
Oprah's June book club pick is here and it's an author she's loved since the '90s Oprah Winfrey has made her latest book club selection, and this time it's a fan favorite. 'The River is Waiting' by Wally Lamb (out now from Simon & Schuster), a propulsive crime novel following a young father after an unforgivable tragedy, is the Oprah book club pick for June. It's the third time Oprah has chosen a Lamb book for her book club – first 'She's Come Undone' in 1997 and 'I Know This Much Is True' in 1998. In a statement, Winfrey says her third pick from the author is indicative of 'what I think of this truly masterful and beloved writer.' 'Wally Lamb takes us on an incredible and transformative journey from the depths of despair to the healing power of facing the truth and finding forgiveness,' Winfrey said in a statement. Oprah's Book Club June pick: 'The River is Waiting' by Wally Lamb 'The River is Waiting' follows Corby Ledbetter, a struggling new father who is already mourning the loss of his job and the consequences of his secret addiction before tragedy strikes. Now incarcerated, Corby struggles with the violence and brutality of prison but also finds a prison librarian, a good-natured cellmate and a troubled teen who give him something to fight for. This novel is his quest for forgiveness and hope. Lamb is the author of nine books, including two nonfiction collections of testimonies from imprisoned women, 'Couldn't Keep It To Myself' and 'I'll Fly Away.' His second novel, "I Know This Much Is True," was adapted into a miniseries starring Mark Ruffalo in 2000. In a statement, Lamb reflected on his four phone conversations with Winfrey over his career, three of which were to notify him of the book club selection. The first time she called him, it was 1992 and Winfrey simply wanted to express her gratitude for him writing 'She's Come Undone.' Five years later, she chose it as her fourth book club pick. 'I'm not sure why I've been on the receiving end of such grace and good fortune, but I try to live each day expressing my gratitude in the way I treat others,' Lamb said in a statement. 'And of those four phone conversations with Oprah, I think my favorite may be the first one, before there was an Oprah's Book Club, when I received a validating gift from an avid reader who just wanted to thank me for having written my book.' Clare Mulroy is USA TODAY's Books Reporter, where she covers buzzy releases, chats with authors and dives into the culture of reading. Find her on Instagram, subscribe to our weekly Books newsletter or tell her what you're reading at cmulroy@
San Francisco Chronicle
10-06-2025
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
Book Review: Wally Lamb explores human cruelty and grace in prison with `The River is Waiting'
Corby Ledbetter is in trouble. In Wally Lamb's new novel, 'The River Is Waiting,' Corby has lost his job as a commercial artist and has developed a secret addiction to alcohol and pills, setting him on a dangerous path that leads to an unfathomable tragedy. Corby starts staying at home during the day with his twin toddlers — one boy and one girl — while his wife works as the family's sole breadwinner. Lying to his spouse that he's looking for a job, he starts his mornings drinking hard liquor mixed with his prescription pills for anxiety, leaving him incapable of properly caring for the children he loves. A tragic mix up one morning results in the death of Corby's young son when he accidentally drives over the boy in their driveway. Devastated by the loss of little Niko, Corby now also faces a three-year prison sentence for involuntary manslaughter. 'The River Is Waiting' is Lamb's first novel in nine years and a new chance to explore human imperfection as he did in earlier best-selling novels that included 'She's Come Undone,' about an obese adolescent girl awash in depression, and 'I Know This Much Is True,' the story of a man fighting to protect his paranoid schizophrenic twin brother. Oprah Winfrey announced Tuesday that she picked 'The River Is Waiting' for her book club, the third time she's selected a Lamb book. Almost all the action in Lamb's latest book plays out in prison, an ideal setting to examine the worst and best of humanity. The author taught writing workshops for incarcerated women over two decades, an experience that has helped him to draw a vivid picture of life behind bars, with all its indignities and a few acts of grace. While Corby is tormented by two excessively cruel guards, he also befriends the prison librarian, who shares book recommendations and homemade cookies with inmates who stop by. She even encourages him to paint a mural on the library wall. Several other prisoners also become friends, including a kind cellmate who looks out for him. Corby later tries to look out for someone else — a severely troubled young inmate who shouldn't have been locked up with hardened criminals. During his imprisonment, Corby worries about whether his beloved wife, Emily, and their daughter, Maisie, can ever forgive him. But the experience hasn't left him especially enlightened. At the end, Corby remains mostly a self-centered guy. He's no hero and there's no big epiphany. Like the protagonists in Lamb's earlier novels, he is utterly human, failings and all. ___
Hindustan Times
10-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Book Review: Wally Lamb explores human cruelty and grace in prison with `The River is Waiting'
Corby Ledbetter is in trouble. In Wally Lamb's new novel, 'The River Is Waiting,' Corby has lost his job as a commercial artist and has developed a secret addiction to alcohol and pills, setting him on a dangerous path that leads to an unfathomable tragedy. Corby starts staying at home during the day with his twin toddlers — one boy and one girl — while his wife works as the family's sole breadwinner. Lying to his spouse that he's looking for a job, he starts his mornings drinking hard liquor mixed with his prescription pills for anxiety, leaving him incapable of properly caring for the children he loves. A tragic mix up one morning results in the death of Corby's young son when he accidentally drives over the boy in their driveway. Devastated by the loss of little Niko, Corby now also faces a three-year prison sentence for involuntary manslaughter. 'The River Is Waiting' is Lamb's first novel in nine years and a new chance to explore human imperfection as he did in earlier best-selling novels that included 'She's Come Undone,' about an obese adolescent girl awash in depression, and 'I Know This Much Is True,' the story of a man fighting to protect his paranoid schizophrenic twin brother. Oprah Winfrey announced Tuesday that she picked 'The River Is Waiting' for her book club, the third time she's selected a Lamb book. Almost all the action in Lamb's latest book plays out in prison, an ideal setting to examine the worst and best of humanity. The author taught writing workshops for incarcerated women over two decades, an experience that has helped him to draw a vivid picture of life behind bars, with all its indignities and a few acts of grace. While Corby is tormented by two excessively cruel guards, he also befriends the prison librarian, who shares book recommendations and homemade cookies with inmates who stop by. She even encourages him to paint a mural on the library wall. Several other prisoners also become friends, including a kind cellmate who looks out for him. Corby later tries to look out for someone else — a severely troubled young inmate who shouldn't have been locked up with hardened criminals. During his imprisonment, Corby worries about whether his beloved wife, Emily, and their daughter, Maisie, can ever forgive him. But the experience hasn't left him especially enlightened. At the end, Corby remains mostly a self-centered guy. He's no hero and there's no big epiphany. Like the protagonists in Lamb's earlier novels, he is utterly human, failings and all. book reviews: /hub/book-reviews
