David Giard
- 43
- opiniones
- 4
- votos útiles
- 45
- calificaciones
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The Known World
- De: Edward P. Jones
- Narrado por: Kevin Free
- Duración: 14 h y 18 m
- Versión completa
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General4 out of 5 stars 942
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Narración:4.5 out of 5 stars 510
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Historia4 out of 5 stars 510
Henry Townsend, a black farmer, bootmaker, and former slave, has a fondness for Paradise Lost and an unusual mentor, William Robbins, perhaps the most powerful white man in antebellum Virginia's Manchester County. Under Robbins's tutelage, Henry becomes proprietor of his own plantation, as well as of his own slaves. When he dies, his widow Caldonia succumbs to profound grief, and things begin to fall apart.
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2 out of 5 stars
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A meandering audiobook...
- De Daniel en 09-03-04
- The Known World
- De: Edward P. Jones
- Narrado por: Kevin Free
Shed light on what was an unknown world to me
Revisado: 12-01-24
Add to the list of things I did not know: Before the American Civil War, some black people owned slaves. It was not common, but it was legal, and it happened.
Edward P. Jones's 2003 novel "The Known World" tells the story of Henry Townsend, a former slave whose father was able to purchase his freedom. Henry used his freedom to buy a tobacco plantation and purchase thirty slaves of his own.
The story begins with Henry's untimely death as his widow tries to maintain order on the plantation.
A plethora of subplots and characters often made keeping everyone's story straight challenging. I sometimes found it necessary to flip back to remember the backstory of the current chapter's main character. In addition, Jones presents a non-linear narrative, frequently stepping away from a scene to reveal a character's fate decades later or to describe a present-day historian researching the story's events. Despite these difficulties, Jones builds and evolves his characters well. They are complex - none are purely good or purely evil, instead reacting to the circumstances in which they find themselves.
Jones explores the social structure of society, showing a clear hierarchy in antebellum America among whites, mixed-race people, freed blacks, and slaves. The few rights the law afforded blacks were sometimes not enough. In one scene, a white man kidnaps a free black man and sells him back into slavery.
Henry Townsend is a fictional character, as is Manchester, the county where the action takes place, but the author makes them feel real. He brings to the fore the doomed institution of slavery and the complex personal and societal issues of those involved.
"The Known World" shed light on what was an unknown world to me.
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The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
- De: Mark Haddon
- Narrado por: Jeff Woodman
- Duración: 6 h y 2 m
- Versión completa
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General4.5 out of 5 stars 16,325
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Narración:4.5 out of 5 stars 12,765
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Historia4.5 out of 5 stars 12,775
Fifteen-year-old Christopher Boone has Asperger's Syndrome, a condition similar to autism. He doesn't like to be touched or meet new people, he cannot make small talk, and he hates the colors brown and yellow. He is a math whiz with a very logical brain who loves solving puzzles that have definite answers.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A Different View of the World
- De Alan en 05-19-04
- The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
- De: Mark Haddon
- Narrado por: Jeff Woodman
Moving story of a boy on the spectrum who was lied
Revisado: 07-06-24
Mark Haddon's 2003 novel "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time" is difficult to assign to a category. Although some see it as a story for youth, the strong language causes me to question whether this is a suitable book for children. Some view it as a mystery, but the clues presented are not as foolproof as a traditional detective story.
Christopher Boone, a bright 15-year-old boy in Swindon, England, narrates the book. The first-person narration gives us a look into Christopher's thought processing. Although Christopher possesses a remarkable mind, he has emotional issues that suggest he may be on the autism spectrum. He takes everything literally; he cannot stand to be touched; he is incapable of lying; and he obsesses over colors and prime numbers. In fact, the chapters of "Curious" are all prime numbers, rather than the traditional ordinal numbers. Additionally, his handicap prevents him from filtering excessive stimuli or applying intuition. But he possesses a photographic memory and a gift for using logic and reason in every situation.
Christopher has lived alone with his volatile father, Ed, since Ed came home two years ago and informed him that the boy's mother died of a heart attack in hospital.
One day, Christopher discovers the body of his neighbor's dog, Wellington, stabbed to death by a gardening fork. Christopher sets out to find the killer. When Ed learns that Christopher has been bothering the neighbors, he insists that the boy stop meddling in other people's business.
As the story progresses, we learn more about Christopher, his family, and some of the lies told to Christopher and the reader.
As someone recently hurt by the lies of someone close, this story resonated strongly. Like Christopher, I trust people until they demonstrate they do not deserve that trust. Like Christopher, the pain feels like a betrayal when people break that trust.
This book is filled with anxiety and frustration and heartache and humor and hope - much like life.
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Wuthering Heights
- De: Emily Brontë
- Narrado por: Patricia Routledge
- Duración: 14 h y 15 m
- Versión completa
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General4 out of 5 stars 872
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Narración:4.5 out of 5 stars 778
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Historia4 out of 5 stars 777
The passionate and tragic story of Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff is one of the high points of 19th-century Romantic literature. In the relationship of Cathy and Heathcliff, and in the wild, bleak Yorkshire Moors of its setting, Wuthering Heights creates a world of its own, conceived with a disregard for convention and an instinct for poetry and the darkest depths of the human soul in torment.
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5 out of 5 stars
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I loved how much I hated everyone
- De Dan Harlow en 07-07-13
- Wuthering Heights
- De: Emily Brontë
- Narrado por: Patricia Routledge
Classic novel of lost love, torment, and revenge
Revisado: 05-04-24
Emily Bronte's classic novel "Wuthering Heights" is a tale of misfortune, anger, revenge, and despair.
Mr. Ernshaw owned Wuthering Heights - an estate on the moors of northern England. He returned from a trip to Liverpool with the young orphan Heathcliff, which disrupted life at home. Ernshaw's daughter Katherine befriended Heathcliff, so she and her father were able to protect the foundling from the cruelty of her brother Hindley, who was jealous of further sharing his father's affections. But things grew much worse after Ernshaw died. Hindley took over the estate and began making life miserable for Heathcliff. By this time, teenage Katherine and Heathcliff had fallen in love, but she could no longer protect him alone. Heathcliff felt utterly abandoned when Katherine became engaged to the wealthy, arrogant Edgar Linton. Disappointed and angry, Heathcliff escaped to earn his fortune; he returned years later, seeking revenge on those who wronged him.
Bronte's book resonates because of the characters she created. She published her novel in 1847, and the story takes place in the late eighteenth and early twentieth centuries, but it is relevant today. Many of us behave irrationally when confronted with overwhelming tragedy - sometimes hurting ourselves in our efforts to harm others.
"Wuthering Heights" is a complex story - a dysfunctional love story with significant character flaws among the major players. Heathcliff is the most tragic character. He is bitter about the abuse he suffered in his youth. As an adult, he responds by abusing all around him - not just those who caused him pain. He lost his soulmate twice - first to another man, then to death. In his bitter agony, he begs Katherine's ghost to shun Heaven and haunt him forever. The visions he sees may be her spirit or the delusions of a tormented mind.
If the book has a weakness, it is Bronte's use of a narrator within a narrator - a common practice in Gothic fiction. Heathcliff's tenant begins telling the story and then relates the history of the family tragedy as told to him by the housekeeper, Nellie. The tenant adds little to this story. A narration exclusively by Nelly would be more straightforward.
But this is a minor complaint overshadowed by an epic story that reveals the souls of a set of complex characters.
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The Dutch House
- A Novel
- De: Ann Patchett
- Narrado por: Tom Hanks
- Duración: 9 h y 53 m
- Versión completa
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General4.5 out of 5 stars 57,051
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Narración:5 out of 5 stars 51,024
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Historia4.5 out of 5 stars 50,691
At the end of the Second World War, Cyril Conroy combines luck and a single canny investment to begin an enormous real estate empire, propelling his family from poverty to enormous wealth. His first order of business is to buy the Dutch House, a lavish estate in the suburbs outside of Philadelphia. Meant as a surprise for his wife, the house sets in motion the undoing of everyone he loves. The story is told by Cyril’s son Danny, as he and his older sister, the brilliantly acerbic and self-assured Maeve, are exiled from the house where they grew up by their stepmother.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Not my favorite Patchett
- De Regina en 12-07-19
- The Dutch House
- A Novel
- De: Ann Patchett
- Narrado por: Tom Hanks
A story of hanging onto and letting go of the past
Revisado: 04-27-24
How does one respond when one loses almost everything as a child?
Danny was an infant, and Maeve was five when their mother, Elna, left. Their father, Cyril, fired their nanny when she accidentally hit Danny with a spoon. When Cyril died intestate years later, his second wife Andrea claimed their home - a suburban Philadelphia Mansion known as "The Dutch House" - and drove away her two stepchildren.
Ann Patchett's 2019 novel "The Dutch House" tells their story, as narrated by Danny.
Maeve was diabetic, but she was an adult and strong enough to raise Danny, protecting her younger brother. The two became inseparable throughout their lives - spiritually, if not always physically. Stripped of their home, their only inheritance was an educational trust fund to be shared by Danny and Andrea's two children. Danny and Maeve sought revenge by spending all the trust on Danny's education. He enrolled in the most expensive prep school, college, and medical school despite having no intention of ever practicing medicine.
Although it exists in the background, The Dutch House remains a significant character in this story. The house looms in their memory, representing everything the children lost. For years, Danny and Maeve drive out of their way to see and sit in front of their childhood home.
Patchett brings us into Danny's head but also allows us a peek into the lives of Maeve, Celeste, Andrea, and Elna. Elna ran from her family to serve the poor because she could not accept her husband's sudden wealth and his desire to live in an opulent mansion. The selfishness of abandoning her children is balanced by her desire to help the underprivileged.
"The Dutch House" is a modern fairy tale, complete with a wicked stepmother. Like many fairy tales, there are logical gaps (Why did a savvy businessman like Cyril never draw up a will?), but the character development more than makes up for these flaws.
The story is about loss and guilt and forgiveness. But it is mostly about letting go of the past.
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Advise and Consent
- De: Allen Drury
- Narrado por: Allan Robertson
- Duración: 33 h y 18 m
- Versión completa
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General4.5 out of 5 stars 240
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Narración:4.5 out of 5 stars 220
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Historia4.5 out of 5 stars 221
Allen Drury has penetrated the world's stormiest political battleground and the smoke-filled committee rooms of the United States Senate to reveal the bitter conflicts set in motion when the president calls upon the Senate to confirm his controversial choice for secretary of state. This novel is a true epic, showing in fascinating detail the minds and motives of the statesmen, the opportunists, the idealists. Advise and Consent is a timeless story with clear echoes of today's headlines.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Advise and Consent
- De BookReader en 05-27-15
- Advise and Consent
- De: Allen Drury
- Narrado por: Allan Robertson
The dirty side of politics
Revisado: 04-21-24
Allen Drury's 1959 novel "Advise and Consent" begins with the US President announcing Robert Leffingwell as his candidate for Secretary of State. The candidacy requires the approval of the US Senate. This consent seems likely given that Leffingwell enjoys strong support from the Press and the American people.
South Carolina Senator Seab Cooley vigorously opposes the nomination, but one can easily discount his arguments due to his longstanding personal grievance against Leffingwell.
The hearings become dramatic when a former student accuses Leffingwell of active involvement in a Communist organization years earlier. The candidate denies the accusation. Things turn nasty as each side resorts to blackmail to achieve their ends.
Drury does an excellent job building the suspense in this political drama. When we think one side has the edge, the opposition surprises us with an unethical move that threatens to affect the outcome. Those who practice these questionable strategies rationalize their actions. They do not care that they are destroying lives - both metaphorically and literally - because they believe that the end goal justifies any actions.
Drury builds a cast of compelling characters who battle with one another. Most are not evil, but all are ambitious, and the collateral damage caused by their actions is often devastating. The reader identifies in some way with almost all of them. The story's heroes are heroic because they resist this temptation toward demagoguery that has seduced their colleagues.
Members of the Press are less well-defined. The author never identifies them by name but only by their paper, network, or service. They serve to provide commentary on public opinion toward the nominee.
The controversy of "A+C" revolves around Leffingwell's past association with Communist - a threat that loomed large in the public's consciousness and Congress's agenda during the Cold War. Today, we tend to dismiss this threat - primarily due to the overzealous activities of discredited Senator Joseph McCarthy. However, we still deal with candidates who lie under oath and politicians willing to ruin their opponents to achieve their goals. These current issues make this novel relevant today. That might be why "Advise and Consent" was revived after being out of print for over a decade.
Drury, a former UPI reporter who covered the Senate, was a staunch anti-Communist. The fact that he grossly overestimated the threat posed by American Communists should not diminish the value of this novel. It effectively and engagingly shows the dark side of politics.
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Last Chance Texaco
- Chronicles of an American Troubadour
- De: Rickie Lee Jones
- Narrado por: Rickie Lee Jones
- Duración: 16 h y 33 m
- Versión completa
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General5 out of 5 stars 381
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Narración:5 out of 5 stars 317
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Historia4.5 out of 5 stars 315
Last Chance Texaco is the first-ever no-holds-barred account of the life of two-time Grammy Award-winner Rickie Lee Jones in her own words. It is a tale of desperate chances and impossible triumphs, an adventure story of a girl who beat the odds and grew up to become one of the most legendary artists of her time, turning adversity and hopelessness into timeless music.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Wow
- De Suzanne en 04-15-21
- Last Chance Texaco
- Chronicles of an American Troubadour
- De: Rickie Lee Jones
- Narrado por: Rickie Lee Jones
Honest and Vulnerable
Revisado: 03-26-24
Rickie Lee Jones has been on the edge of my vision for most of my life. She scored a massive hit with "Chuck E's in Love" off her first album and received occasional airplay and award nominations over the following decades. Her duet with Dr. John performing "Makin' Whoopie" has always been one of my favourites.
But I knew very little about her. I became curious after I saw Rickie in concert last month, so I picked up her autobiography "Last Chance Texaco: Chronicles of An American Troubadour," which tells Ms. Jones's story from her childhood to the beginning of her successful recording career.
Rickie Lee grew up in a troubled home. She was raised primarily by her orphaned mother; her father drank; her brother lost his leg in a motorcycle accident; the family moved frequently; authorities removed her sister from the home; and her parents divorced. Rickie ran away multiple times, living on the road in Arizona, California, and Mexico. As a young adult, she wrote songs and sang until she received her big break with her breakthrough debut album.
When fame arrived, her rise was meteoric. Within two years, Jones received four Grammy nominations, recorded what many credit as the first music video, appeared on Saturday Night Live, and was featured on the cover of Rolling Stone Magazine twice!
Rickie tells of her numerous liaisons with men in and out of the music industry, including the times she lived with Lloyd George and Dr. John. But her most intense relationship was an on-and-off affair with singer Tom Waits. She talks of her battle to recover from heroin addiction and of her struggle to deal with the rise and fall of her fame, both of which occurred with startling speed. She talks about reconciling with her parents near the end of their lives.
She puts the same lyrical talent into her prose that she puts into the stories of her songs. The book's title comes from a song on Rickie Lee's first album - a song about struggles while traveling as a metaphor for struggles with life's journey. "Last Chance Texaco" is a story of a rollercoaster life, told with the passion of a woman who lived it fully. Jones tells it with honesty and vulnerability.
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Lonesome Dove
- De: Larry McMurtry
- Narrado por: Lee Horsley
- Duración: 36 h y 41 m
- Versión completa
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General5 out of 5 stars 8,372
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Narración:5 out of 5 stars 7,567
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Historia5 out of 5 stars 7,541
Two retired Texas Rangers, Captains Woodrow Call and Augustus "Gus" McCrae, lead a cattle drive from the small town of Lonesome Dove to the unsettled Montana territories. On their grueling journey, they are joined by Joshua Deets, a Black scout and former Ranger, Jake Spoon, a fugitive, and Newt Dobbs, a 17-year-old boy who may have family ties to Call. Richly authentic, beautifully written, always dramatic, Lonesome Dove will make listeners laugh and weep, dream and remember.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Could not listen
- De Amazon Customer en 09-05-18
- Lonesome Dove
- De: Larry McMurtry
- Narrado por: Lee Horsley
Epic Western Story
Revisado: 03-26-24
Larry McMurtry's 1985 novel "Lonesome Dove" begins in the small Texas border town of Lonesome Dove in the 1870s, where McMurtry introduces a cast of characters, including retired Texas Rangers and best friends Woodrow Call and Augustus McRae, who made a name for themselves fighting Indians in their youth. Former Ranger colleague and friend Jake Spoon returns to town after ten years of traveling the west. He is a drinker, a gambler, and a rogue, but he is charming, and he captures the heart of the town prostitute Lorena Wood. Jake tells of the untamed lands in Montana, so a group leaves Lonesome Dove to drive cattle to Montana and establish the first ranch in that territory, which sets off a series of adventures, dangers, and unlikely reunions.
Before his arrival, Jake accidentally shot a man in Arkansas, leading Sheriff July Johnson to hunt for Jake. Johnson's new wife, Elmira, grew bored of her married life and abandoned her town and her husband, so July spends part of his journey searching for her.
The story is complex, involving a diverse array of characters whose paths cross unexpectedly and sometimes implausibly. McMurtry fills his tale with tragedy and selfishness. The nineteenth-century American West is a harsh world, and the people of this novel harden themselves to it.
It is a breath of fresh air when we encounter a moment of tenderness. The characters feel real to the reader. Their flaws can be found in many of us. Some of them redeem themselves, while others meet a deserved or undeserved fate.
A theme of the story is acceptance of responsibility for one's actions. One character refuses to acknowledge paternity responsibilities; others are punished for their association with villains and the fear that prevents them from escaping that association.
"Lonesome Dove" won the 1986 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and inspired a TV mini-series and multiple follow-up novels by McMurtry. It is a story of hope and disappointment; of friendship and loyalty; of unrequired love; of regrets for paths not taken; and of challenge, failure, and triumph. It is a tale of aging gunfighters coming to terms with the changing world around them. It is an epic tale of life in the Old West.
Despite all the sorrows of "Lonesome Dove" and its characters, I loved the journey.
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Lonesome Dove
- De: Larry McMurtry
- Narrado por: Lee Horsley
- Duración: 36 h y 47 m
- Versión completa
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General5 out of 5 stars 7,804
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Narración:5 out of 5 stars 7,025
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Historia5 out of 5 stars 7,000
Journey to the dusty little Texas town of Lonesome Dove and meet an unforgettable assortment of heroes and outlaws, whores and ladies, Indians and settlers. Richly authentic, beautifully written, always dramatic, Lonesome Dove will make listeners laugh, weep, dream, and remember.
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1 out of 5 stars
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The Narrator’s breathing is unbearable!!!
- De Basic Review en 08-28-19
- Lonesome Dove
- De: Larry McMurtry
- Narrado por: Lee Horsley
Epic Western Story
Revisado: 03-26-24
Larry McMurtry's 1985 novel "Lonesome Dove" begins in the small Texas border town of Lonesome Dove in the 1870s, where McMurtry introduces a cast of characters, including retired Texas Rangers and best friends Woodrow Call and Augustus McRae, who made a name for themselves fighting Indians in their youth. Former Ranger colleague and friend Jake Spoon returns to town after ten years of traveling the west. He is a drinker, a gambler, and a rogue, but he is charming, and he captures the heart of the town prostitute Lorena Wood. Jake tells of the untamed lands in Montana, so a group leaves Lonesome Dove to drive cattle to Montana and establish the first ranch in that territory, which sets off a series of adventures, dangers, and unlikely reunions.
Before his arrival, Jake accidentally shot a man in Arkansas, leading Sheriff July Johnson to hunt for Jake. Johnson's new wife, Elmira, grew bored of her married life and abandoned her town and her husband, so July spends part of his journey searching for her.
The story is complex, involving a diverse array of characters whose paths cross unexpectedly and sometimes implausibly. McMurtry fills his tale with tragedy and selfishness. The nineteenth-century American West is a harsh world, and the people of this novel harden themselves to it.
It is a breath of fresh air when we encounter a moment of tenderness. The characters feel real to the reader. Their flaws can be found in many of us. Some of them redeem themselves, while others meet a deserved or undeserved fate.
A theme of the story is acceptance of responsibility for one's actions. One character refuses to acknowledge paternity responsibilities; others are punished for their association with villains and the fear that prevents them from escaping that association.
"Lonesome Dove" won the 1986 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and inspired a TV mini-series and multiple follow-up novels by McMurtry. It is a story of hope and disappointment; of friendship and loyalty; of unrequired love; of regrets for paths not taken; and of challenge, failure, and triumph. It is a tale of aging gunfighters coming to terms with the changing world around them. It is an epic tale of life in the Old West.
Despite all the sorrows of "Lonesome Dove" and its characters, I loved the journey.
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Beneath a Scarlet Sky
- A Novel
- De: Mark Sullivan
- Narrado por: Will Damron
- Duración: 17 h y 43 m
- Versión completa
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General4.5 out of 5 stars 48,363
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Narración:4.5 out of 5 stars 43,342
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Historia5 out of 5 stars 43,156
Pino Lella wants nothing to do with the war or the Nazis. He's a normal Italian teenager - obsessed with music, food, and girls - but his days of innocence are numbered. When his family home in Milan is destroyed by Allied bombs, Pino joins an underground railroad helping Jews escape over the Alps, and falls for Anna, a beautiful widow six years his senior. In an attempt to protect him, Pino's parents force him to enlist as a German soldier - a move they think will keep him out of combat.
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5 out of 5 stars
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The Best Thing? It Really Happened!
- De Chip Atkinson en 08-07-17
- Beneath a Scarlet Sky
- A Novel
- De: Mark Sullivan
- Narrado por: Will Damron
Moving and entertaining
Revisado: 02-06-24
Although "Beneath a Scarlet Sky" is a novel, author Mark Sullivan based it on the life of Pino Lella, a young Italian man who helped rescue Jews and spied on the Nazis in occupied Italy at the end of the Second World War.
It was a difficult time for Italy. Mussolini's Fascist government was collapsing. The Germans had moved in to stabilize the country but brought the brutal Nazi tactics with them. The Allies were advancing throughout Europe and bombing Milan and other Italian cities. Resistance groups organized to fight the Nazis and Fascists, but some people joined these groups to terrorize their countrymen and increase their power.
Pino was a teenager when the Germans came to Italy. He did what he could to help those threatened by the invaders. First, Pion led Jews across the mountains into Switzerland to escape almost certain death in a concentration camp. Later, he volunteered as a driver for a Nazi General to gain information for the resistance - a role that placed him in daily danger and that caused many of his friends and family to label him a traitor.
He also fell in love with the General's maid.
The story begins slowly, but the pace accelerates with each section. The suspense increases significantly when Pino volunteers to join the German Army to spy on the Nazis. After the war ends, the violence continues as the newly freed Milanese seek vengeance against any they perceive as Nazis or Nazi collaborators.
Sullivan builds the story very well. We see Pino's evolution in maturity, skill, and courage. We feel his pain when his friends assume he is working for the Nazis. His heartache is apparent when his courage fails and when he loses loved ones.
"Beneath a Scarlet Sky" is a story of espionage, action, adventure, love, and loss. It is a study of what ordinary people will do to survive and of what courage means.
How much of the book is true is anyone's guess. Sullivan based the story on his interviews with Lella, and no one has independently corroborated the tale's events. But it is dramatic, moving, and entertaining. And that is enough for me.
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Demon Copperhead
- A Novel
- De: Barbara Kingsolver
- Narrado por: Charlie Thurston
- Duración: 21 h y 3 m
- Versión completa
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General5 out of 5 stars 30,471
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Narración:5 out of 5 stars 27,577
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Historia5 out of 5 stars 27,511
Set in the mountains of southern Appalachia, Demon Copperhead is the story of a boy born to a teenaged single mother in a single-wide trailer, with no assets beyond his dead father’s good looks and copper-colored hair, a caustic wit, and a fierce talent for survival. Relayed in his own unsparing voice, Demon braves the modern perils of foster care, child labor, derelict schools, athletic success, addiction, disastrous loves, and crushing losses.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Wow! It’s a Masterpiece
- De Billy en 10-25-22
- Demon Copperhead
- A Novel
- De: Barbara Kingsolver
- Narrado por: Charlie Thurston
Imaginative modern retelling of Dickens's classic
Revisado: 01-01-24
Damen Fields was born with many disadvantages. His father died before he was born. His single mother raised him in poverty before marrying an abusive husband before she died. These events thrust young Damen into the social services system, where he suffered abuse at the hands of a series of foster parents.
Damen took the last name of his dead father, "Copperhead," in part because of his flaming red hair. He also embraced the nickname "Demon" - a nod to his fiery personality.
Barbara Kingsolver's 2023 novel "Demon Copperhead" tells the story of this boy as he grows to manhood. Kingsolver drew inspiration and many plot elements from Charles Dickens's "David Copperfield."
Demon's life parallels the life of Dickens's Copperfield in many ways. In addition to the single mother, abusive stepfather, and being orphaned at a young age, Demon faces torment at the hands of the unscrupulous U-Haul Pyles (a modern version of Uriah Heep), receives comfort from the kindly elderly Mrs. Peggot (Kingsolver's version of Mrs. Peggotty), and falls for the beautiful but irresponsible Dori (an incarnation of Dora Spenlow).
Despite borrowing many characters and story elements from Dickens, "Demon Copperhead" is Kingsolver's story. The action mostly takes place in the Appalachian region of southwest Virginia and reflects the culture and poverty of that area.
The book has many themes - the effect of expectations on motivation, the caste system in America, stereotypes of the Appalachians, hero worship, and the roles of the education system and health care system in poor communities.
Two themes dominate the novel - each in a different part. The first part reveals the difficulties - and sometimes horrors - of growing up in the foster care system. At age 11, Demon moves from home to home, and each "caregiver" exploits him in some way. One keeps all his foster children out of school so that they can work his tobacco farm; another puts him to work in a meth lab, then steal his earnings. Even the kindest of his foster parents grooms him for the high school football team that he coaches.
The second part of the novel focuses on the dangers of drug abuse. Drugs are freely available among high school students, and doctors frequently prescribe addictive painkillers to their patients. Demon's addiction begins with opioids (drugs that contributed to his mother's death) before escalating to harder narcotics. When asked if a friend is taking drugs, Demon responds, "I don't know a single person my age that's not taking pills."
"Demon Copperfield" could have been a clever marketing ploy, drawing in readers already familiar with Charles Dickens's classic story. But it is more than that.
Ms. Kingsolver's novel shared the 2023 Pulitzer Prize with Hernan Diaz's "Trust," a testament to its appeal beyond being a tribute to the Dickens classic.
The overarching theme of the book matches that of "David Copperfield." "Demon Copperhead" addresses the enormous challenges of growing up in institutional poverty and the hope of overcoming those challenges to become something more than what you were born to.
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