Not quite a coming-of-age, but a sojourn in the life of young Orri. Twenty years old and searching for a life and location to help him define himself. Over one year, we are witnesses as Orri takes a break from university and goes home to his family farm in western Iceland to help raise cattle and look after the farm for a year. We get a truly captivating look into cattle-farming in Iceland and minutia that separate a thriving farm from a dying one. I was a bit shocked, not just at how much detail we got at each step in the arduous farming process, but how fascinating this story told in granular detail would end up being.

If this were merely a nonfiction book exploring the farming done in these frigid, wet conditions, I still think I would have loved it; but sprinkled on top of it this story, was a fascinating story of family, friendship, and you love. The beautifully crafted characters of Pabbi and Mamma form the backbone of the book while, other younger relationships blossom in ways both meaningful surprising. A book I look forward to revisiting for years to come.

definitely a nice coming of age but a little hard to read at points? the details seemed abit excessive. 4stars. tysm for the arc.

Wonderful Icelandic setting and information, enjoyable characters, excellent writing
Narrator Orri is in his first year at the University of Reykjavik, but when he comes home to the family farm for his two-week March holiday, he realizes how overwhelmed his father “Pabbi” is and takes leave from school to help out. His mother is a Lithuanian Jew who teaches at Bifrost University, and it is clear the farm needs her financial support, but Pabbi also needs help just to get the work done. In addition to working around the farm, Orri takes on other projects, like helping his neighbor Runa acclimate to her newly discovered lesbian identity and exploring a romantic attachment for himself.
The people in the book are well developed and believable (as is the dog Rykug), and it was easy to become immersed in following them . After we get a thorough introduction to their lives and their problems, though, the real complications do not arise until about two thirds of the way through the book.
Although the plot did not take off as soon as anticipated, I picked up a LOT of interesting information in this book! Like most Americans, I know little about Iceland, and I really enjoyed learning more about the country’s geography and history and discovering famous people of Icelandic descent, like Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan. The Prologue to the book gives a beautifully poetic description of “Iceland’s paradox: The very stubborn nature of the place is change itself.” I discovered interesting things like brennivin, Iceland’s national drink. There were very evocative farming descriptions, including a beautifully sad description of killing a cow. I also picked up a new term, “beard”, a fake heterosexual partner for a gay person so that people will think they are straight.
An early reviewer of Red Dog Farm described it as a “deeply moving study of character and place”. I agree completely, and readers who approach the book with this expectation will find a lot to enjoy. If you are looking for a plot-driven read, though, you might want to save this book for another day.
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley and Little Brown and Company.

I loved his first novel! I enjoyed this one. It felt like a love letter to Iceland detailing the reality of living in a harsh yet beautiful place. The story of this family was beautifully told. It was tender, heartbreaking, and hopeful at the same time.

I had really wanted to LOVE this book. I was immediately drawn to the title, and I had recently read another novel taking place in Iceland, so was looking forward to it. Though I did like it and enjoy aspects of it, I did not love it.
I think the author's intent was for this to be a serene and quiet book, yet descriptive and allegorical–and those things it was. I found it very atmospheric, with vivid imagery of the farming life, as well as the birthing and slaughtering of cattle. The landscape and cold of Iceland was also well depicted. For me, what was lacking had to do with the characters. They were just not deep enough for me. I enjoy characters that I feel a connection with, ones that I feel I know personally. I did not get that feeling in this book. The story line was good, though a little slow, the ending was ultimately satisfying.
Thank you NetGalley and Little Brown for the opportunity to read and review this novel.

What a beautiful story about Iceland, its people, and its history. Miller writes about Orri, a young man on a a harsh Icelandic farm and tells us about his adventures with his family, his schooling, his neighbor, Runa, and his girlfriend, Mihan. His red dog also features prominently! The book is very descriptive and may seem a bit slow at first, but the story matures as you read it. The ending is surprisingly surprising, but in hindsight was completely predictable.
Thank you, NetGalley, for an ARC.

It is no secret that I fell madly in love with Nathaniel Ian Miller's magnificent debut novel, The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven, and drank in our magical time exploring the Artic Circle. In this sophomore novel, we experience a contemporary coming-of-age story set on a family farm in the rugged landscape of Iceland.

At the novel's heart is Orri, a young man whose upbringing on a cattle farm instilled a deep appreciation for the world of farming but who feels pulled, like many young people, to begin his college studies at the university in Reykjavík, leaving behind his academic Lithuanian Jewish mother and his stoic father, Pabbi, whose years of toil on the farm are beginning to weigh heavily on him.

As you may come to expect, acclimation from farm life to a college dorm is fraught with difficulties, including Orri's adjustment to the loud noises of the city that begin to plague him with insomnia that never completely goes away throughout much of this story. It's unfortunately been a relatable journey for me as I read this novel in the wee hours of the morning after another sleepless night. Miller shares Orri's relatable journey in beautiful passages, "For what is sleep, but magic?" and "Sleep is elusive- it can slip away from you and hide in corners if you're not attentive, but the paradox is that you must cultivate inattention if you want to find it again."

Orri, bleary-eyed, goes through the motions of school but never finds his footing, realizing that he feels most at home on his family farm. So, when Pabbi falls into a deep depression, haunted by his past and the unrelenting cycles of life and death on the farm, he makes his way back home.

There, he finds an unexpected comradery with a farmer girl on a quest to find a lady in a limited Icelandic pool for sapphic adventures and a comfortable long-distance romance of his own. It is also where he discovers one of my favorite coming-of-age moments: his parents' humanness as they weather their secrets and difficulties in this unforgiving land.

This novel has many wonderful surprises, like its thoughtful exploration of the Lithuanian Jewish experience, a spitfire grandmother who is a gifted physician, a memorable dog, and well-researched documentation of daily farm life in Iceland.

Miller intends to capture every aspect of Icelandic farming life, and, at times, this hinders the plot's progress. The pacing is glacial, and readers wade through the daily muck of farm life in brutal detail as they care for these animals. As someone who spent her summers on a family farm, I can attest that he is showcasing the reality of farm life in all its unpleasant glory and the triumphs when those rare days work out for them. It's so unhurried, but I imagine that reveling in these details was Miller's sweet spot, as he is a Vermont farmer.

This atmospheric story is a great winter novel best enjoyed over several days. It allows you to marinate in Miller's evocative and descriptive language. It's an excellent fit for any literary fiction enthusiast, and I can't wait to see what the author creates next.

Growing up on a cattle farm in Iceland, Orri feels that leaving for college will satisfy his search for independence. When he returns home for the holidays, he feels a connection to the farm and the land and decides to stay. As the farm takes a visible toll on his parents, his future is upended. A coming of age story about growing up and wanting a connection- to his family , his love and the land he will fight to keep. Deeply layered characters and a mesmerizing narrative. Highly recommend.
Thanks to NetGalley for an advance copy.

This is a slow-paced, atmospheric book about a young man coming of age on his family's farm in Iceland. As he struggles to decide what to do with himself - attend university or stay on the farm, try to make his relationship with his girlfriend work or break up - he copes with the daily challenges of farm life and just the general challenges of being human. Despite the hardships of his life, Orri desperately loves his family's land, livestock, and way of life. There is some beautiful commentary on Icelandic scenery, and some intermittent dives into Iceland's history as well. I recently traveled to Iceland (for me, part of the appeal of this book was the setting) and having been there myself really helped me connect with the imagery of the story and better understand the harsh climate farmers there undoubtedly face.

It's not the most exciting read, and although it's the first book I've read this year, I already know it won't be my favorite book of the year. However, it's a lovely meditation on life, hardship, and nature in a dramatic setting. If you enjoy leisurely novels and have any connection to or interest in Icelandic culture, I would recommend you give this a try. Best read while it's cold out, and you're nice and toasty inside!

This had some high reviews so I really looked forward to reading it. It is a DNF for me. I try very hard not to give up on books, especially ARCs but this one was just too much. I hit my limit on reading page upon page about farm excrement while no plot was being developed overall.

A contemplative look at life's struggles as seen through the experiences of a farm in Iceland. This is a quiet story that does not move especially quickly, but the reflective pace works well and there is an elegance to the prose. Readers looking for a blockbuster plot should look elsewhere, but I recommend this one for fans of literary fiction. I especially admired the wisdom found within these pages. Also, as expected, the scenery descriptions are wonderful.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance e-galley; all opinions in my review are 100% my own.

My initial reading of the abstract left me with the feeling that they weren't following the plan of the book. I was really confused and wanted something else. However as I got into the book it dawned on me that it was something even greater than I had guessed. We have Mamma, Pabbi, Amma, and Orri the family unit. Then we have Milan as Orri's lover and also Luna as a friend. We have other characters that are included in the story but these are the main characters that are in the story. It's about farming and when Orri was 19 it was when Pabbi was mentally thinking about quitting farming. So we have Orri wanting to farm and Pabbi wanting to quit. Luna was into sheep and her dad was a drunk but Mamma wanting Orri to think about Luna as a bride but he found out that she needed women instead of men, but she was a very good friend. Then he went on line and found Milan and became in love with her. It escalates over time and Milan also loves Orri. What happens is amazing and you have to read this yourself Nathaniel really treats this with gloves and makes it so.

A struggling Icelandic cattle farm is the background for this intense, descriptive tale of life's struggles. This was a lovely book, very well written. Due to the new culture of Iceland, your full attention is needed to follow this story.
Thank you Net Galley for the ARC.

An interesting memoir from a culture different from my own. It provided a fun storyline that was very descriptive. Overall good read and would recommend.

I received a free advanced copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

An Iceland paradox: “The very stubborn nature of the place is change itself. Not always adaptation but alteration. It’s written into our rocks and our bones.”

“Farm-raised children don’t grow up to farm much more often than farm-raised eggs grow up to be chickens…No norms, just opportunities, blood, and choices.”

Mamma, an immigrant, was a first generation Icelander. She worked as a politics professor at BiFrost University. Pabbi was a generational farmer from a long line before him. Mamma and Pabbi met at the library. She pursued her studies, he shelved books. Mamma had no interest in farming, no fondness for the country. “She chose Pabbi-and whatever came with him in the bargain.” Orri’s life was at a crossroads. He was about to become a first year college student at the University of Iceland (at Reykjavik).

Pabbi was a contrarian. In an attempt to farm a better way, he chose to keep no sheep, horses or Icelandic cattle, only slow-growing Galloways. He had a “genuine fondness for animals, he experienced life as a slow leak, a gradual drying out of hope.” He was stoic; a farmer needed to endure a great many things.

Mamma’s mantra: Success through education. She, herself, was the daughter of a well respected pulmonologist. She hoped that her son, Orri would embark upon a successful career after attending Uni. Education ran deep in Mamma’s blood.

Initially, Orri enjoyed college having felt stifled by rural life and weekend farm labor. Soon however, he was bombarded by “unwelcome stimuli”; streetlights, drunkards, and shouting neighbors. He discovered that he “missed the company of animals-their pace and uncomplicated needs.” The opportunity to return home arose when Pabbi needed help with the calving. Since Pabbi controlled every aspect of the farm, Orri didn’t know how to farm. “Pabbi kept a great deal from me. He wavered perpetually between a desire to keep farming joyful…and a compulsion to rob me of my illusions.”

Pabbi’s stubborn insistence upon working alone would not get the job done. Orri was taught to mow, rake, bale and wrap bales of hay. He learned to calve and cull the herd. He started to feel a “heady draught of independence and capability…”. Would he return to his studies at Uni after total immersion in farm life?

Against the stark landscape, with the ever present possibility of volcanic eruption, farmers carved out a hardscrabble life. Two important workers were the tractor “Kolkrabbi”, which puttered, ceased, then eventually got the job done and faithful companion Australian Kelpie, “Rykug” who helped work the cattle. Winters were frozen. In spring-the arrival of the golden plover…”The plover had arrived to banish the snow…Sunshine in the valley blooms in the meadow…” Could budding love bloom as well?

Highly recommended.

Thank you Little, Brown and Company and Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was pretty good, it did remind me a little bit of a Hallmark movie, but less cheesy. I did enjoy reading about the different cultures and different country. It was descriptive, and the characters were enjoyable.

Thank you to NetGalley, to the author, and to the publisher for this complementary ARC in exchange for my honest review!!!