National Writers Series Presents - Leif Enger

The NationalWriters Series is pleased to present Leif Enger, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Peace Like a River, in conversation with guest host Doug Stanton, also a bestselling author and NWS co-founder.

Leif will take the stage to talk about I Cheerfully Refuse, his newest book praised by author Kristin Hannah as “my favorite novel of the year.” It is a national bestseller and Amazon’s #9 “Top 20 Book Pick” of the year.

Set in a not-too-distant America, the novel tells the tale of Rainy, who sets sail on Lake Superior in search of his departed, deeply beloved, bookselling wife. On the water, he encounters lunatic storms and rising corpses from the warming depths. On land, he finds increasingly desperate and illiterate people, a malignant billionaire ruling class, crumbled infrastructure, and a lawless society.

Amidst the Gulliver-like challenges of life at sea and no safe landings, he is lifted by physical beauty, surprising humor, generous strangers, and an unexpected companion in a young girl who comes aboard. As time passes, Rainy’s private quest for the love of his life grows into something wider and wilder, sweeping up friends and foes alike in his strengthening wake.