desana75's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Vomit, and Death
Moderate: Animal death
astoriareader's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
1.0
- Damon Fields, aka Demon Copperhead, is born in Southern Virginia in the late 1980s to a teen mom with substance issues. Demon’s mom is in and out of rehab, and he is partly raised by the Peggots.
- Demon’s mom ends up marrying an abusive man.
- Demon is shuffled off to a foster home run by Mr. Creakle & then a few more. He finally ends up with football coach, and the book weaves his story with opiod addiction.
- Prior to reading this one, I saw some articles online about it that said it is a retelling of Dicken’s novel entitled David Copperfield.
- After seeing rave reviews & that the author won the Pulitzer Prize for this book, I waited on library wait list for quite a while. I am in the minority here, but this book & writing style was not for me.
- Although the opiod crisis is a serious topic, I can’t recommend this book. This book DRAGS. It is so unnecessarily slow. It took me 7 days to finish. I typically finish any book, even books I don’t like, in max 4 days. It was getting to feel like homework getting through it. There’s a ton of parts that didn’t need to be included.
- The writing style was nauseating to me. I hated it. It is Demon describing & relaying things, and his voice wasn’t strong enough for that job. It’s like a child relaying things to you for 500+ pages. I also didn’t buy Kingsolver’s ability to write in the shoes of this character. It didn’t sound realistic at all.
- The characters are all flat & many are stereotypical cliches. To name a few, think: single drug addicted mom living in trailer, abusive stepdad, Appalachians are all white people, Appalachians are hillbillies.
- I also found Demon’s trajectory unbelievable in terms of his path to drugs. It doesn’t line up with everything he has witnessed & experienced. The author comes across as an outsider to the subject.
- I did like the Peggots, Aunt June, Mrs. Annie, and Tommy.
- I enjoy complex characters that make sense, but the characters in this book don’t make sense.
Graphic: Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Alcoholism, Alcohol, and Addiction
Moderate: Death, Animal death, Toxic relationship, Sexual content, Trafficking, Pregnancy, Fatphobia, Death of parent, Miscarriage, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, and Classism
Minor: Vomit and Homophobia
miaaa_lenaaa's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Child abuse, Classism, Child death, Death, Abortion, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Confinement, Grief, Miscarriage, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Medical content, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Gun violence, Mental illness, and Murder
kmpodgorski's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Addiction, Chronic illness, Drug abuse, Classism, Miscarriage, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Alcohol, Animal death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Trafficking, Mental illness, Death, Child abuse, Vomit, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts
navyredrose's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Death, Toxic relationship, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Addiction, Pregnancy, Drug use, and Cursing
Moderate: Gore, Alcoholism, Miscarriage, Classism, and Alcohol
Minor: Incest, Pedophilia, Trafficking, Sexual violence, and Animal death
indiana_sorell's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Sexual harassment, Domestic abuse, Animal death, Death, Suicide, Addiction, Child death, Death of parent, and Sexual violence
atamano's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Alcoholism, Bullying, Death, Drug abuse, Grief, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Child abuse, and Death of parent
Moderate: Vomit, Animal death, Body shaming, Cancer, Gun violence, Sexism, Domestic abuse, Ableism, Classism, and Gore
Minor: Sexual content, Suicide, and Pregnancy
agnesg's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Drug use, Abandonment, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Death, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Child abuse
Moderate: Bullying, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Animal death, Grief, Drug use, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Drug abuse, Domestic abuse, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, Pregnancy, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Car accident, Trafficking, Vomit, and Toxic relationship
poetsofsweetpea's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Alcoholism, Racial slurs, Addiction, Alcohol, Animal death, Terminal illness, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Violence, and Vomit
grboph's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Drug abuse, Gore, Grief, Blood, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Classism, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Toxic friendship, and Violence
Moderate: Racism, Xenophobia, Cancer, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Outing, Child abuse, Pregnancy, Animal death, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Terminal illness
Minor: Abortion and Dementia