4.5/5 Stars – A Bold, Witty, and Insightful Ride Through Academia and the Midwest

Cecil Homer’s Prairie Valkyries Don’t Canter is one of those rare novels that manages to be both fiercely intellectual and warmly entertaining, weaving together sharp critiques of gender inequity with humor, heart, and a keen sense of place. At its center is Jennifer, a woman whose determination to challenge the rigid norms of 1970s academia leads her to carve out a space for herself — and for other women like her — in the male-dominated world of sociology.

Jennifer’s journey from a graduate student fighting to earn her PhD to a professor wielding unapologetic power is a story of grit, wit, and rebellion. Her unconventional family life, which includes her “Three Daddies” — Bob, her estranged husband; Paul, her former Methodist minister; and Father Brian, a Catholic priest — adds richness and humor to her character, while also underlining the book’s refusal to conform to tidy, expected narratives. Homer’s exploration of sexuality, family, and relationships is refreshingly frank, challenging societal norms without losing sight of the very human emotions underneath.

At the same time, Jennifer’s decision to raise her daughter Valky alone, and to instill in her the spirit of the Valkyrie, provides the book with both its title and its feminist backbone. Valky is less a side character than a symbolic extension of Jennifer’s project: a reimagining of what power and freedom can look like for women who refuse to bend to convention. Homer’s portrayal of the mother-daughter bond is nuanced and compelling, balancing love and guidance with the weight of generational expectations.

The backdrop of the Midwest is another standout feature. Often dismissed as “flyover country,” Homer instead treats it as a living, breathing character, full of contradictions — conservative yet diverse, steeped in tradition yet teeming with overlooked voices and stories. From rural communities to university halls, Homer paints a vivid portrait of a region that is as complicated as the people who inhabit it. His sly humor, threaded throughout, prevents the narrative from ever feeling too heavy, even as it tackles weighty subjects like gender inequity, religious dogma, and institutional power struggles.

What makes Prairie Valkyries Don’t Canter particularly successful is the balance between its intellectual depth and its readability. Homer critiques the entrenched sexism of academia with precision, yet he never slips into dryness or didacticism. The characters’ eccentricities, sharp dialogue, and the playful tone make the novel feel alive. Readers don’t just witness Jennifer’s rise against systemic barriers — they laugh with her, ache with her, and root for her to succeed.

If there’s one minor drawback, it’s that the novel occasionally tries to cover so much ground — from religious commentary to family structures to the mechanics of university politics — that certain threads feel slightly rushed. Yet this is a small quibble in an otherwise rich and layered work.

Ultimately, Prairie Valkyries Don’t Canter is both a feminist manifesto in narrative form and a love letter to the messy, resilient, and often humorous spirit of the Midwest. It’s a novel that rewards readers who are ready to question institutions, laugh at absurdities, and celebrate the power of women who refuse to canter when they were born to gallop.

In this unique and fascinating new novel about family, freedom, and gender inequity in universities, readers follow Jennifer, who challenged academic norms to earn her PhD in sociology and embraced her freedom to teach about the Midwest and its people. Along her path to academic fulfilment, she collects three men -- her estranged husband Bob, her former Methodist minister Paul, and Catholic priest Brian -- and has her daughter Valky, and the four of them raise her. Recruiting likeminded women at the university and challenging the status quo, Jennifer hopes to return to Plainsboro with her three men and her power intact. Unique, fascinating, and complex, this is a fascinating exploration of the university system, its power hierarchies, and its gender inequities. Exploring the complexities of the Midwest and the experiences of its residents, this book’s character development and world-building are brilliantly written, and the depth of detail is fascinating. The characters are definitely the stars of the book, and their relationships with each other really add to their development and the progression of the narrative. A brilliantly written representation of the Midwest, the university system, and women’s empowerment, readers will love the fascinating characters, vibrant settings, and complex relationships in this new novel from Cecil Homer.