Nevermore: Where the Red Fern Grows, Galatea, Plain Truth

 

Reported by Garry

Get out the tissues for Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls. Set during the Great Depression in the Ozarks and based on the author’s own childhood, this multi-award winning classic story of a boy and his dogs has wrenched hearts since it was first published in 1961.  Billy Coleman is a 10 year old boy who dreams of owning a pair of hounds for coon hunting, and works for two years to save up enough to buy a pair.  He and the dogs become Ozarks famous for coon hunting, but tragedy seems to stalk them through forested hollows of the mountains.  Nearly everyone in the Nevermore group had read this book and all praised its powerful, evocative writing and compelling storyline.  CD

 

Galatea:  A Short Story by Madeline Miller is a re-telling of the Pygmalion myth, set in ancient Greece.  Pygmalion is a talented sculptor who creates a statue of the most beautiful woman possible.  He falls in love with the statue, and in response to his prayers, the goddess Aphrodite brings Galatea to life.  Pygmalion wants (and expects) his devotion to be returned by Galatea, but she has her own mind and ideas.  This short story (62 pages long) is told from Galatea’s perspective, and explores themes such as patriarchy, misogyny, feminine desire and autonomy, and much more.  Our reader was very taken with this brief story and highly recommends it.  MS

 

Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult is a murder mystery set in an Amish community.  A dead baby is discovered in a barn, and Katie Fisher, an 18 year old Amish girl is the presumed mother and murderer– but she claims she was never pregnant.  Ellie Hathaway is a Philadelphia defense lawyer who impulsively takes on Katie’s case, only to discover that her modern life-style is at odds with the Plain life lived by the Amish – no electricity, work is valued over leisure, church rules override legal rules, etc.  As with other Picoult books, the research that went into this book shows on every page as it delves deeply into the lifestyle and belief system of the Amish people.  Our reader says that this book is extremely well-written with not only a great murder mystery, but an insightful examination of the social issues that arise from a society that is at odds with the “typical” society.  NH

 Other titles mentioned:

John Vance Journal by John Vance

Southwest Saga:  The Way It Really Was by William C. McGaw

Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult

The Need to Be Whole by Wendell Berry

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

Nights of Plague by Orhan Pamuk

The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman

JD Vance is A Fake Hillbilly by Frank Kilgore

The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper by Phaedra Patrick

The Messy Lives of Book People by Phaedra Patrick

On the Rooftop by Margaret Wilkerson Sexton

Rise and Shine Benedict Stone by Phaedra Patrick

Letters from Home by Kristina McMorris

Midnight at the Blackbird Café by Heather Webber

The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston

The 12 Hour Art Expert:  Everything You Need to Know about Art in a Dozen Masterpieces by Noah Charney

The Beauty in Breaking: A Memoir by Michele Harper

Visual Thinking by Temple Grandin

Ted Kennedy – A Life by John Farrell

Sissy:  A Coming of Gender Story by Jacob Tobia

The Guncle by Steven Rowley

Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue