Leif Enger’s third novel, Virgil Wander, was published in 2018, 10 years after his best-selling debut, Peace Like a River. Virgil Wander was longlisted for the Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction and recognized as the best book of the year by Amazon, Library Journal, Bookpage, and the Chicago Public Library. The story revolves around a middle-aged man who survives a near-fatal vehicle accident and discovers a new sense of purpose and community in the unusual town of Greenstone, Minnesota. Dealing with memory loss and rebuilding his life, Virgil relies on his eccentric friends to help him understand Revival and Redemption, The Importance of Community, and Celebrating the Beauty of an Ordinary Life. The idea for the novel stemmed from Enger’s visit to a deteriorating Art Deco-style, one-screen movie theater in Florida with his wife. Enger met the owner, who had invested in the theater, hoping it would benefit the town. Like Virgil, the theater owner addressed the audience each night before the movie.

The source material comes from the Atlantic Monthly Press 2018 e-book edition.

Plot Summary

After his parents’ tragic deaths and a failed attempt at theology school, Virgil Wander moves to Greenstone, Minnesota, and purchases the Empress Theater. Once a thriving mining town, now in decline after the collapse of the mining industry, Greenstone is failing, and so is the Empress. Duluth Dukes pitcher Alec Sandstrom becomes a local minor league baseball legend when he pitches the team’s only perfect game. That same night, Alec’s son Bjorn is born. Alec retires from baseball and moves to Greenstone with his wife, Nadine, where Alec takes up flying. One day, he and his plane go missing over Lake Superior, and no trace of the accident or Alec is ever found, but some locals think he survived and is living in hiding. Nadine never remarries, though many men come courting while she continues running their neon sign business and raising Bjorn.

Nearly 18 years later, in a historic snowstorm, Virgil runs off the road and into the lake. His car sinks, but Marcus Jetty saves him. Virgil sustains a head injury that leaves him struggling to speak and walk. Having cheated death, Virgil feels like he should do something meaningful with his life, but he can’t figure out what it is. At the same time, two people arrive in town. Adam Leer, son of Greenstone’s founder and a shady character, returns after a long time away. Rune Eliasson, Alec Sandstrom’s father, arrives from Norway having just learned that he had a son. He’s come to Greenstone to learn about Alec and hopefully discover what happened to him. Virgil nearly burns down the Empress when he forgets to turn off the stove in his concussed state. On his doctor’s recommendation, he invites Rune to stay with him for safety. Virgil quickly takes to Rune, an eccentric older man who loves to create and fly kites. Rune begins interviewing people in town and learning about the son he never knew. Shad Pea drowns while fishing for a legendary sturgeon, and everyone worries it’s a sign Greenstone’s luck is turning bad again.

Adam Leer hires local handyman Jerry Fandeen to renovate his family home. Jerry, who is recovering from alcoholism, thrives while working for Adam, but Adam begins an affair with Jerry’s estranged wife, Ann. The town starts preparing for the annual festival, and Ann becomes part of the planning committee. In a nod to the town’s penchant for bad luck, she chooses bad luck as the theme, and she plans a carnival and concert. Virgil, who works as the city clerk, runs the crumbling Empress. He has a cache of stolen films, which increasingly weighs on his conscience. Sensing he needs a change, Virgil searches for a buyer for the Empress and finds a lawyer to help him unload the cache.

Jerry begins renovating the Hoshaver building across the street from the Empress. Adam Leer promises to inject life into the town by renovating the historic building. Virgil realizes Jerry lives there after learning about Adam and Ann’s relationship. Meanwhile, Rune continues flying his kites and draws a crowd each time he takes one out. Rune spends time with Nadine and Bjorn but struggles to connect with the teenager. Virgil sees that Bjorn is working and hires him to help run the Empress. Bjorn loves movies and is a natural at running the archaic movie projector. Virgil also mentors Galen Pea, Shad’s young son, who has been hunting the sturgeon since Shad’s death. Virgil has always loved Nadine but never acted on it, feeling like he was betraying Alec. Yet, after the accident, he feels he can’t wait and confesses his feelings to Nadine. She loves him, too, and they begin a relationship.

Along with a rabies outbreak, the town has a string of fertilizer and wind chime robberies. Sheriff Don discovers a marijuana farm, and voles invade, damaging property. A wet, dreary winter brings new leaks to the Empress, and Virgil knows the roof needs replacing. Virgil notices that Jerry is becoming thinner and sadder each day, and he worries about him living alone in the abandoned building. Virgil and Bjorn begin hosting after-parties at the Empress, communal events that many people enjoy. After one of the parties, Rune goes out to fly his kite and meets Adam Leer. Adam’s appearance disturbs Rune, and he refuses Rune’s offer to fly the kite. The kite catches on to a power line, and Rune is badly electrocuted. After leaving the hospital, he recovers at home, and Bjorn comes daily to change his bandages, forging a special bond between them.

Jerry’s behavior becomes stranger, and after looking into it, Virgil realizes that Jerry is building a bomb with the stolen fertilizer. He confronts Adam about it, but Adam runs from his house and disappears into the river. Virgil and Bjorn chase him and find the sturgeon. Galen jumps from a bridge onto the fish and drags it to the bank to kill. On the festival day, Jerry disappears in his car, loaded with the bomb. Don calls Homeland Security, and they alert the public gathered in the town for the festival. Jerry has a change of heart, leaves the car at the abandoned plant, and walks into town to confess. The bomb explodes, but no one is hurt. Jerry goes to jail, and the city converts the bombed site into a green space. Nadine and Virgil get married and visit Rune in Norway on a honeymoon. Bjorn stays behind to run the Empress, which Virgil intends to sell.