Can I even comment on Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver given that I have not read David Copperfield? (collective intake of breath from the blogging community).
Kingsolver reimagines Copperfield against the backdrop of the mountains of southern Appalachia; racism; trailer parks; foster care; and the opioid crisis of the eighties.
Certain pitiful souls around here see whiteness as their last asset that hasn’t been totaled or repossessed.
With any urchin story, I find it impossible not to give a little bit of my heart to the child.
I was born to wish for more than I can have.
That certainly happened with Demon, whose hope, and faith and trust in some people, combined with his wariness of others made him endearing (…good people don’t give up on the ones they love…). Kingsolver strikes a balance between Demon’s street-smarts (knowing how to sober his mother up) and naivety (discovering that some people have an abundance of food on their table every night).
I got up every day thinking the sun was out there shining, and it could just as well shine on me as any other human person.
The colloquial language is lush and arresting, and yet not overdone. And Demon is funny.
All God’s children have to take a shit, but you’d never know it from the way they treat the ones who have to clean it up.
I loved the small details and themes that were carefully incorporated – for example, there are a handful of references to Demon being born ‘en caul’ (superstition suggests that a baby born in an un-ruptured amniotic sac will never drown) and his subsequent desire to see the ocean. Had Kingsolver overworked these motifs, the story might have veered toward the contrived, but it never felt that way.
There’s significant commentary on the foster care system in America; the stereotyping of ‘hillbillies‘; and the opioid crisis. I’ve done some reading about opioids and Big Pharmas, so although the information was not new to me, I appreciated that Kingsolver has given it a memorable fictional context – I think that goes a long way to helping people understand or consider an issue from a different perspective.
What’s an oxy, I’d asked. That November it was still a shiny new thing. OxyContin, God’s gift for the laid-off deep-hole man with his back and neck bones grinding like bags of gravel. For the bent-over lady pulling double shifts at Dollar General with her shot knees and ADHD grandkids to raise by herself. For every football player with some of this or that torn up, and the whole world riding on his getting back in the game. This was our deliverance. The tree was shaken and yes, we did eat of the apple.
My energy flagged a little toward the end of the book (it’s a solid 560 pages) but ultimately not enough to change the way I felt about Demon and the people close to him.
We both lay back down, and she looked at me in the eyes, and we were sad together for a while. I’ll never forget how that felt. Like not being hungry.
4/5
The description of Demon and Angus’s Christmas on their own is glorious. The housekeeper leaves them food, including a green bean and potato chip casserole (which sounds bizarre and a bit revolting to me!).
560 pages, that might even be longer than Dickens’ original!
I wouldn’t know! 😀
It’s never too late.
I predict that you would need a hanky…
Actually, the Dickens version is about twice as long. Mine has 1,008 pages. LOL But it’s totally worth reading.
I’m with you all the way on this one Kate – I adored it too. Demon was such a wonderful character.
I really loved the character of Angus as well.
Not sure I can cope with the misery of it at the moment but I’ll get to it eventually.
The misery is well-balanced with humour and hope (more so than Shuggie Bain for example).
I’ve not read David Copperfield, for some reason I’ve never got round to reading any Dickens (except Pickwick Papers when I was a boy). And I’m not a fan of authors rewriting other authors’ stories.
I quite enjoyed The Poisonwood Bible, but I won’t be picking this up, not even as an audiobook.
I quite enjoyed this one but felt it was a bit preachy by the end, but Demon was a great character.
You’ve convinced me, Kate. I’m definitely going to have to read this book. I’ve been putting it off, mostly because of the title. And the green bean casserole is pretty much a staple for family gatherings here in the U.S., although it’s usually topped with crispy onion rings from a can rather than potato chips, at least in my experience. Thanks for a great review.
I think those who don’t know the Dickens original (800+ pages) are more likely to enjoy this! Whereas David Copperfield was my favourite book from age 14 onwards, so Kingsolver’s take felt unnecessary and, yes, preachy when there have been so many other books exposing the opioid crisis. But Demon reminded me of Holden Caulfield — definitely a memorable voice.
Nice review. I haven’t read David Copperfield either. I have read Hillbilly Eleggy–a good non-fiction pairing with this novel. I live about 8 miles from the start of Appalachia in southern Ohio. Demon Copperhead is all around me! I love Kingsolver–I’ll read this eventually. Sadly, the opioid crisis has never ended–it’s still here. Still overdoes in gas station toilets and parked cars.
I don’t believe it… We posted on the same day! Or was mine just after midnight into today. Anyhow I’m en route to Melbourne so it was only Lisa telling me you’d reviewed it that I knew. Enjoyed your post, particularly your quote selections. I ran out of time but am thinking of a quotes post.
I’ve not read David Copperfield either. I have had Demon Copperhead in my sights for awhile but get out off by the number of pages! However, having recently read the 645-page The Bee Sting I really ought to get over my prejudice against chunksters and give Kingsolver a whirl!
I loved this book. Now I want to read the original — David Copperfield.
I have just read and reviewed Demon Copperhead. As a fan of Barbara Kingsolver and Charles Dickens, I had to read this. It’s a great book, and reading it knowing David Copperfield makes it even more interesting. I would definitely recommend reading both books. They are totally fantastic.