Universal Harvester: A Novel

This book is Amazon's Best Book of February 2017. The book begins back when small video stores were popular. The story is set in a small central Iowa town name,Nevada. The protagonist is Jeremy Heldt who works as a clerk in the video store. He is twenty-two years old. His father and friends tell him he should look for a better job. This job is o.k. for a student, but he is a young man and should be looking to get ahead. But Jeremy is satisfied with his life as it is. Jeremy and father, Steve, spend a lot of time together. Linda Heldt, the wife and mother, was killed in an automobile accident six years ago on an icy, dark road. Father and son miss her. The two make it a point to always have supper together.Suddenly characters return videos commenting on how the videos contain strips from somewhere else. Tiny sections, blurred seconds of something or someone intrude in the videos. How could this happen? This is weird, beyond strange. Jeremy watches one of the videos. The added section sticks in his mind and he cannot sleep. He feels haunted by something. The book contains strange descriptions of the land. Tall fields of corn, hiding whatever is behind the corn. Sounds that can't be heard even by those close by. Anything can happen and does, people can get lost and are never found in these landscapes. The countryside is attractive during the day, but when night falls and the dark comes over the land, the area becomes fearful, creepy, weird, frightening. The sounds of night insects and movements of nocturnal creatures.Mr Darnielle's writing is so different, but I like it and the different way the story is told. Interesting characters tell their life stories. I started reading it not wanting to rush through, then put it aside, then started reading and had to finish it is that good. The book goes back and forth in time, but that's o.k. with me.Sarah Jane, Jeremy's employer is a good boss, but she disappears, moves in with a friend in an old farmhouse. But why? Employees can't get in touch with her or find her. Stephanie, a teacher, is one who tells Jeremy about the weird strips inserted into the videos and also tells him he should move away from Iowa, have some ambition.The book is hard to write about but contains some interesting characters and scenes which I like. There is the feeling of loss and abandonment, of being alone, but isn't this true with everyone. This is a state of small towns, cornfields which can be scary at night. The book goes through the seasons, but those long, cold nights are scary. The name sounds like a very large company, and also like the coming of the grim reaper. Steve Heldt has found a lady friend.I heard about this book on PBS. I like reading new writers, fresh, different, innovative, different ways of telling a story.

I don't really blame John Darnielle for the fact that Universal Harvester was marketed as a horror novel; in the end, if you're a publisher, you hate to label things as unclassifiable, and there are undeniably elements of Harvester that work as horror. When an Iowan video clerk starts finding tapes returned with unusual scenes spliced into the videos, you can't help but think of The Ring (even though the tapes remind me of far starker fare), and there's a definite air of unease and uncertainty around these strange images and where they're coming from. But Darnielle, as you might imagine from his other books, isn't that interested in a conventional story here, and if you're waiting for clear answers about any of it, you're going to leave disappointed. Universal Harvester is more of a mood piece, one that evokes loss throughout - it is undeniably a book about mothers, but it's also a book about losing people and what happens to us afterward - and that theme blends with the unease to make something fairly unique. It's also, if I'm being honest, frustrating; Darnielle has a habit here of building up to plot revelations and then cutting away from them, keeping the book from revealing anything, and by the end, so much of what happened is up to interpretation that I ended the book a little frustrated and disappointed. I think, though, that the book is exactly the book Darnielle set out to make, and I think it's oddly haunting and beautiful, thanks in no small part to Darnielle's beautiful prose, where his songwriter abilities serve him well in the crafting of perfect phrases to capture a moment. There's also a genuine sense of small town life here, anchored by one who knows it and has not just understanding but empathy for these places, and it gives the book a heart it might not otherwise have. It's a frustrating book and not entirely satisfying, and it's definitely not a horror novel. But it's beautifully told and evocative, and that kept me going even when the plot did not. Rating: *** ½

Universal Harvester has characters that seem real. The book realizes its characters by going through very normal aspects of everyday life with the main characters. The character development is also accomplished by following the characters from childhood to adulthood. With a Lisa character it even goes back to her early childhood and shows her family life at an even younger age then the other characters. The also does a good job at following the feelings, concerns, and security that go along with moving from job to job or town to town. Both moving and films are a common theme throughout the book. While Universal Harvester does well to develop a character, it lacks a little in action. There is an accident but it is short lived.

Awesome book, arrived on time and in great shape. I enjoyed it more than wolf in white van but John definitely has his own unique writing style

An enjoyable (I think that is the right word!) read, where the mystery is wrapped up in a detailed and brilliantly written portrayal of small town America. John Darnielle has a talent for descriptive narrative, as fans of his music will certainly attest to. He also has a way of drawing the reader into the story, and holding you there, almost a participant in the unfolding events.This book is very different to his first, the equally good Wolf in White Van. Primarily concerned with family, and how the roots we put down (or don't) influence the decisions and actions we take throughout our lives, Universal Harvester feels in places quite dark and brooding. There is, however, an undercurrent of hope, which ensures that you never feel overwhelmed by it. All in all, an excellent read.

An extraordinary book that binds you into its world completely. Every sentence is perfectly poised to create that world and keep you there. I loved it.

good read - quite strange

Couldn't follow storyline, jumped ALL over the place,thought it was a printing error it was so bad,tried a few more chapters it was worse!?????