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blairmahoney's review against another edition
4.0
Debut novel by an American author, long listed for the Man Booker. It's pretty good, especially for those who appreciate good descriptions of work. Is it something out of the ordinary? Not really, but it's worth a look. Slots into second place of the two books I've read on the long list.
dellaposta's review against another edition
3.0
This morally complex novel set in 1920s Alabama focuses on the painful downfall and crooked path to redemption of its memorable protagonist, Roscoe T Martin. I found the most interesting parts to be about work itself, both its redemptive and exploitative elements. The novel leans heavily on the interior life of Roscoe and is not always easy to get through, especially at the moments where the journey feels meandering.
craftbuzz's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
marksid's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- 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
3.5
ridgewaygirl's review against another edition
4.0
Virginia Reeves's first novel was long listed for the Man Booker prize. It didn't make it on to the short list, but I was happy to have read this historical novel set in Alabama between the world wars.
Roscoe is an unsuccessful farmer. Which is to say, he's an electrical engineer who was happy in his work until his wife's father died and left her the family farm. Living on a farm isn't something that fulfills Roscoe and things are going downhill when he comes up with the idea of tapping into the electrical wires now being strung across the state. It does indeed help the farm, but at a terrible cost, and when the theft is discovered, both he and Wilson, who has worked on the farm for decades, are sent to prison. No spoilers here; the book is divided into the events taking place before the arrests and after they are sent to prison.
Reeves opens the novel with Roscoe abusing his wife and son, and yet still manages to make him a sympathetic character. He's a wonderfully written character; an ordinary man stuck in terrible circumstances, which he handles as well as he can. He's complexly written, as are most of the other characters. I especially appreciated how Reeves wrote about Wilson and his family. Wilson's time in prison was much harsher than Roscoe's, with Roscoe, a white man, being sent to a "model" prison and Wison, a black man, being rented out to work in mines, effectively as slave labor.
There are a few signs that this is a debut novel. At times the research show through and is presented heavily. Reeves clearly researched every aspect of this novel and there's a solidity to her descriptions of prison life and of farm life that show that she isn't just winging it.
Roscoe is an unsuccessful farmer. Which is to say, he's an electrical engineer who was happy in his work until his wife's father died and left her the family farm. Living on a farm isn't something that fulfills Roscoe and things are going downhill when he comes up with the idea of tapping into the electrical wires now being strung across the state. It does indeed help the farm, but at a terrible cost, and when the theft is discovered, both he and Wilson, who has worked on the farm for decades, are sent to prison. No spoilers here; the book is divided into the events taking place before the arrests and after they are sent to prison.
Reeves opens the novel with Roscoe abusing his wife and son, and yet still manages to make him a sympathetic character. He's a wonderfully written character; an ordinary man stuck in terrible circumstances, which he handles as well as he can. He's complexly written, as are most of the other characters. I especially appreciated how Reeves wrote about Wilson and his family. Wilson's time in prison was much harsher than Roscoe's, with Roscoe, a white man, being sent to a "model" prison and Wison, a black man, being rented out to work in mines, effectively as slave labor.
There are a few signs that this is a debut novel. At times the research show through and is presented heavily. Reeves clearly researched every aspect of this novel and there's a solidity to her descriptions of prison life and of farm life that show that she isn't just winging it.
erincampbell87's review against another edition
2.0
I was never really quite sure what this book was trying to say. It ends without making any real commentary on the prison system, or on the power of men to change, or on the impact a societal fear of progress has on individuals. The writing is beautiful and stark, and definitely morally ambiguous. But I never felt particularly invested in the characters. The chapters spent with Roscoe in the prison, learning to work and bonding with dogs, and when he was first released and relearning how to live with the man his crime most harmed, were the most meaningful to me. But it seems as if Reeves intended to set the novel up as a love story, in the end, and that storyline fell flat to me, simply because we never truly come to know or care about Roscoe's family. The book is too short to follow through on the emotional pivot needed to transform the family back into major players in Roscoe's life once he returns home from prison. It's pretty easy to tell that you're reading an expanded short story when most of the plot is described in the blurb. Perhaps it was because this year's list of Booker nominees was otherwise so strong, but this book left a lot emotionally unresolved for me.
amycrea's review against another edition
5.0
Clearly this one really worked for me. Having seen other readers say the ending was too neat, I'd conjured up what would be an overly tidy ending in my opinion before I finished the book, and lo and behold, the actual ending wasn't that tidy. Roscoe T Martin is a very flawed character, yet very sympathetic, very human, and I found his story so compelling. One of the best books I've read this year.