Greetings, hello. There’s much to talk about as the news was just announced from the U.K. that author Barbara Kingsolver has won again for her 2022 novel Demon Copperhead. Wow this time she’s won the Women’s Prize for Fiction and earlier she won the Pulitzer Prize. She’s raking in the accolades this year. Coincidentally I just finished reading the e-book of it, which took me a month, LOL. It’s a lengthy read and reminded me slightly just in its large scope of Donna Tartt’s The Goldfinch, perhaps because like that one it’s also about a boy’s coming of age into young adulthood. Though Copperhead is a bit more issue-oriented and inspired as a modern-day takeoff of Dickens’s novel David Copperfield set in Appalachia. I’m glad to have finally finished it and to know what all the fuss is about. I have reviewed it below. I guess I’m not totally surprised it won the Women’s Prize as I was thinking it was likely favored over the other fine nominees.
Also this week, condolences to Cormac McCarthy fans as the highly esteemed author passed away this week at the age of 89. I first read his fiction with his 1992 novel All the Pretty Horses, which won the National Book Award, and read him again in 2006 with his haunting and stunning post-apocalyptic novel The Road, which won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction.
I saw the movie too, and it’s scary … about a father and son trying to journey to the coast after some kind of cataclysm of civilization. Yikes the road is a hazardous place. For his notable writing, I am sad McCarthy has passed away and I’d like to go back and read more of his novels sometime, like Blood Meridian or his newer ones from 2022. What would you suggest?
Lastly, I see that author Elizabeth Gilbert has postponed the release date of her upcoming novel The Snow Forest because she said Ukrainian readers objected to it being set in Siberia, Russia, while the war in Ukraine is still going on. The novel was supposed to be released in February 2024 but now its release date appears delayed.
Apparently the novel, is inspired by a true story and tells the tale of a Siberian family that opposes the Soviet government and has lived in isolation for more than 40 years. Hmm if the family opposes Soviet rule then wouldn’t that be a good thing to the Ukrainian cause? Perhaps Gilbert will reconsider her postponement since many are not happy that she has delayed its publication and for the appearance of what precedence this sets. What do you think? I feel if its anti-Soviet and set in the Siberian wilderness I’d like to read it — even as a staunch Ukraine supporter.
And now I will leave you with two books I finished lately. (I will hold off on reviewing a couple others I finished for next time.)
Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver / Harper / 560 pages / 2022
I rounded this novel up from a 4 to a 5 rating — for its big scope of issues about life and for the way the boy, Damon, know by his nickname Demon, tells it. I read this novel as an ebook which took me about a month to finish. I started it in May for my book club and put it aside once in the second half and then picked it up again to complete it.
It’s a hard, darkish journey for Demon of his younger years through poverty, Appalachia, and an addicted mom who marries a man harsh to Demon, who later gets put into foster care at age 10 where he winds up working hard labor and living in inhumane conditions. Up and down Demon’s rollercoaster life goes as he later hitchhikes a long ways to his grandmother’s house and finds some success as a football player in high school and as a talented cartoon creator and artist.
Those are the days I wish he could’ve held onto — living at his Coach’s house whose daughter Angus befriends Demon and helps him along. But no! Things later take a terrible turn and you have to stick around for a long while before finding out if Demon will be all right and be able to regain his footing in life.
As Demon goes from adolescence to teen to young adult, I felt I aged with him through the book. He learns a lot after being put through the ringer as an orphan and later as the opioid crisis unfolds. The story of his life grew on me as it went along. There’s a pretty big cast of characters who come to interact with Demon and who become quite real by the end, some good like a neighbor named June, and Angus, and others quite awful like a guy known as U-Haul and his stepdad Stoner. Most of all there is Demon himself, a tall red-haired kid, a talented artist and football player, who becomes a young adult through all this. He is someone I felt I came to know by the end and whose long often-grueling journey I don’t think I’ll forget anytime soon.
The Churchill Sisters: The Extraordinary Lives of Winston and Clementine’s Daughters by Rachel Trethewey / St. Martin’s Press / 320 pages / 2021
I pretty much loved this nonfiction book about the four Churchill daughters. I found their lives quite fascinating, full of an era of involvement and danger (during both WWI and WWII) and adventure and changing female roles, and also rather tragic about their depression and lives cut short. I learned quite a bit about Diana, Sarah, Marigold, and Mary and their relations to their famous parents. The book mentions their son Randolph but focuses mainly on the girls. They were all different but the family seemed a close, tight-knit unit, and Winston seemed a doting father to all of them.
Although the youngest Mary is the only one who had a long, calm, less drama-filled married life, there’s something about Sarah that appealed to me most. She was foiled in love and never had children; she was ambitious about having an acting career but never fully attained complete success. She also had trouble with alcohol later in life and wound up being arrested several times because of it. Her three close romantic partners all died, which had a sad impact on her. And she died at 67. One husband said she had an obstinate streak that made them both unhappy. Perhaps Sarah was the most interesting as she: worked in the women’s auxiliary Air Force during the war, had a career as an actress, and even maintained a secret love affair with the American ambassador during WWII, which seemed pretty shocking both then and now.
This book clips along at a good pace skipping over years quickly — it seems at times more of an overview of their lives rather than a full picture, but still reveals some detailed and formative information. I was caught up in knowing about each of them. I both listened to the audio and read the hardback book. The book dovetails nicely with The Daughters of Yalta by Catherine Grace Katz, which details Sarah Churchill’s trip with her father to the Yalta conference and I loved it as well. If you want more, read that one too. I’m a bit curious now to read sometime Sarah Churchill’s 1981 autobiography called Keep on Dancing. That book came out just a year before she passed away and seems like it would be fascinating.
That’s all for now. What about you — have you read these books and what did you think?
Hi Susan, great post and I don’t know what it is about Barbara Kingsolver and Donna Tartt but I have stayed away from their novels. They are great authors but I have never read them.. I think there are certain authors who we form preconceptions about (maybe based on the size of their books) and we tell ourselves the experience of reading them is going to be grueling. But that’s wrong. I should give both of these novelists a try. I may be in for a pleasant suprise.
No worries Kathy. I had never read Kingsolver before this book and I don’t know why. Perhaps preconceptions as you say, or that she has a bit of an agenda with her novels? I’d like to read the Poisonwood Bible sometime but it can wait. You might like Tartt’s the Secret History since you read mysteries at times. Perhaps I lean more towards Tartt than Kingsolver. I hope you are enjoying your summer reading. Have a great week.
I’m not at all surprised by Kingsolver’s win. “Demon Copperhead” is an amazing bit of writing.
Hi Dorothy, yeah how Kingsolver spun the tale and put it all together and imagined the cast of characters is quite a feat. Perhaps most of all the way the book addresses the foster care system and the opioid crises on an area such as Appalachia was major & effective. And how she got into Demon’s head for the entire journey of his youth.
Kudos for finishing this doorstopper, and for enjoying it so! You convinced me to read it. While I was reading your review of The Churchill Sisters, I was thinking of that other book you read, and then you mentioned it. 🙂 Too bad about Cormac McCarthy passing away. I’ve never read him, nor Kingsolver nor Tartt, but I’ll make space for DC (hopefully this year), and then I’ll tackle a few others of hers that I have on my Kindle.
Thanks Carmen, I’m still thinking about DC a bit and if it was for me. hmm. It’s quite gritty and grim but it gives a picture of the life there and what happened with opioids. I think I prefer Tartt’s storytelling. But finishing DC was a big accomplishment for me as I rarely read such long books, LoL. The Churchill Sisters was quicker and I liked all the historical aspects.
Maybe you should try McCarthy’s novel The Road? It’s quick and pretty short. Though post-apocalyptic. This was my first Kingsolver book but someday I want to read The Poisonwood Bible. Hope you are liking your summer reading.
The more and more I read all these glowing reviews of Demon Copperhead, the more anxious I get about finally getting my hands on a copy. Just checked and I’m still number 66 on my library hold list, but gaining steady ground. Even tried to find a copy to buy locally (Barnes & Noble and Target) but neither store even stocked them. Probably just should have ordered an ebook a while ago, because now I’m just being stubborn, I think.
Cormac McCarthy became a favorite of mine after reading All the Pretty Horses a few years ago. He was special. (And The Road made me very very nervous about our future on this planet.)
Hi Sam, yeah I never went on to finish the other two books in the trilogy of All the Pretty Horses. Maybe I should do that. I’d have to reread the first since I read it in the 1990s. Though I thought The Road was perhaps his best.
I’m curious if you will like Demon Copperhead. I finally broke down and bought an ebook since I was on hold for it forever. So I can relate to your wait of it.
Good luck & happy reading.
Thanks for a great review. Although I’m not a fan of Kingsolver’s earlier works that I’ve read, I will reserve judgement on this one. My local book group is planning to read it when we reconvene in the fall, so I’ll see if she can impress me with this latest effort. In the meantime maybe I can squeeze a reading of Donna Tartt’s The Goldfinch in this summer.
Thanks James. Glad you stopped by. This was my first Kingsolver book I’ve read. And it is quite a long one but I think it made for a good book club discussion with my group. Various issues to talk about with it. That said I’m not sure if you will like it. It’s a bit rough & gritty & the character goes thru much. I think I prefer Donna Tartt’s storytelling. When I read The Goldfinch a couple summers ago – it took me over a month. But I enjoyed it. The books are a little similar – as boy coming of age tales with many obstacles. Happy summer reading to you!
Delaying a book for a reason like that can always be tricky. I feel like it’s a no win situation. And who knows how long this war in Ukraine is going to last.
Yeah I agree Mark. I’m sure you can’t please everyone on a book. And I feel the author probably should’ve kept with the release date. But it’s tricky amid war.
Kingsolver is one of my favorite modern authors: I have read almost all her books, and I thought this one was great. I reread Dickens’ David Copperfield afterwards to see how she was inspired, which turned out to be fascinating. Almost every Kingsolver character was modeled on one in the Dickens book, and even had a related name, which really shows what a tour-de-force it is.
best… mae at maefood.blogspot.com
That’s interesting Mae and I’m glad you pointed that out. I’m impressed you read the Dickens novel after Copperhead. That’s major reading. I thought Kingsolver’s wide cast was good and believable. It is quite a feat how she pulled it off. I feel pleased to have read it.
I’ve picked up and put down Demon Copperhead twice, and both times it was at key terrible points in Demon’s life (and because the library book was on hold for another). I felt depressed by the events of Demon’s life during times when the country itself is ridiculously affluent. I can’t decide whether I want to try again, but I think I should.*
I’ve read a bit about the Churchill son, but I don’t remember hearing much about the daughters, even in The Splendid and the Vile. But maybe I just missed this.
*Okay, I’ve put it on hold. It looks like the 100+ regular copies/e-copies of the book are all checked out, with many, many holds, but there are two large-print copies available. Large print it is.
Hi Deb, Demon’s life is a rollercoaster but mostly on the down slide. But luckily there is a period of stability and even success once he gets to Coach’s house. That made me feel good, and the end is hopeful too. There is some dark parts to wade through. I held onto hope for Demon — since he seems like a smart & talented kid, which he is. This was my first Kingsolver! Quite a tour de force all in all.
And I think you’d really like the Churchill Sisters …. apparently the author is one of the only writers to put out a book on the Churchill girls — though there’s quite a bit on Randolph who was a bit of a louse & drunk. My husband says there is a bit about the Churchill girls partying during the Blitz in Splendid and the Vile. I will have to see about that when I get to it. Cheers.
I really, really appreciated Demon Copperhead. It reminded me of two nonfiction books I read: Dreamland and the Opioid Epidemic and Hillbilly Elegy. I understand that Kingsolver wrote Demon Copperhead as a sort of reaction to Hillbilly Elegy but I am not clear of her point in terms of what reaction that would be. Now I want to reread David Copperfield.
Hi Anne, did Kingsolver really write the book as a reaction to Hillybilly Elegy? I haven’t heard that but perhaps possible. I’m not clear what her response would be either. Maybe she’s not blaming the people for the opioid crisis — but more the pharma companies and manufacturers, Purdue. That’s what it seems like from the book. I’d like to read Dickens novel sometime too. Thx for stopping by. I hope you are having a good summer!
I’m looking forward to Demon Copperhead, but probably won’t get to it until later in the year. I was sad to hear about Cormac McCarthy, and have read the same books of his as you, but don’t have any others to recommend. I tried Blood Meridian, but couldn’t get interested.
Are you getting any of the rain that we’re getting over here? Snow yesterday at Silverhorn Creek campground and again this morning in Jasper. Crazy weather! I’m just glad we made it safely, but I’m sorry we had to miss out on the Icefields.
Hi Lesley, Too bad about the snow, ugh. That is crazy weather. It’s too bad you missed the Icefields Parkway. That stretch of highway is pretty amazing just because of all the mountain peaks … though it seems you are still seeing a lot of that. Your photos look great. And I hope you have a great rest of the trip. You’ll probably see more wildlife.
And I’ll be curious what you think of Demon Copperhead when you get to it. I rarely read long novels but they are worth it sometimes.
I plan to mention I met up with you in the next blog post and note your blog — hope it’s okay with you. I don’t think I’ll put a photo – (I look weird) I’ll just mention. Cheers.
Still waiting to see a moose, but we are seeing some wildlife now.
Sure, feel free to post about our meet-up! It was a great evening.
Great Lesley. I hope you see a lot. The Icefields Parkway should have them if you decide to go back along there. Enjoy. Sunshine today here!
I keep hearing such good things about Demon Copperhead and I am so happy for Kingsolver that she is getting the awards she deserves.
Hi Helen, this was my first Kingsolver book and it seems she is at the top of her career with this. I’d like to read her novel The Poisonwood Bible sometime. Cheers!
I guess Kingsolver was the firm favourite for the Women’s Prize for Fiction – I wonder if she can win the Booker as well? Don’t think the same author has ever won these three major prizes. It wasn’t my favourite book from the longlist, but I can definitely see why it got so much hype.
Hi Stargazer, that would be nuts if Kingsolver won that too. I agree with you — although I liked the novel & Demon, I didn’t overly love love it. I’m not raving mad about it, but it does seem like Kingsolver put a major effort into it and perhaps captured a world there. From the Women’s Prize, I’d still like to read Fire Rush, which I heard others thought was pretty awesome. Another one for the TBR list! Enjoy your weekend there.
Great review of Demon Copperhead–I agree, I wanted Demon to just stay at Coach’s house and live a normalish life. Thanks for mentioning the cartooning Demon did–I loved that aspect of the novel as well and found it to be an inspired choice of talent and career for Demon