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redheadorganist's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Blood, Classism, Death, Murder, Pregnancy, Racism, Alcoholism, Medical content, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Alcohol, Abandonment, Child death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, and Cancer
Moderate: Grief, Domestic abuse, Forced institutionalization, Sexual harassment, and Sexual content
Minor: Infertility
thevioletfoxbookshop's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
fast-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
4.75
Full of twists and turns, Hang The Moon is a vibrant story of one woman's fierce determination to find family, save her town, and remain true to her self, all while running an underground whiskey operation in Prohibition-era Virginia.
I loved getting to know Sallie Kincaid and watching her grow from a lonely child into a fierce woman. Sallie refuses to bend herself to anyone else's expectations and she refuses to back down from what's right. If you're looking for a strong female lead, look no further! Follow along on her adventures through the sprawling hills of rural Virginia to the ultra-wealthy home of a flapper in Richmond and you'll find yourself transported. Welcome to the early 1920's where you'll go along for the ride on a midnight run smuggling whiskey into Roanoke, fly high in the sky in a WWII biplane, and see the world from the perspective of both the have's and have-not's.
Sallie lives in a world where misogyny and the patriarchy rule with a heavy hand. Prohibition, racism, classism, and poverty are prevalent. To survive, Sallie will have to figure out what's right...and how that might be different than what's legal or proper or expected or easy. She'll have to learn that the world is rarely as black and white as she thought it was as a child. And when that rose tint of childhood fades, Sallie must reckon with the fact that the adults in her life are not as upstanding and admirable as she once thought. In fact, secrets and scandals abound! As those secrets come out, Sallie learns that history often repeats itself, especially when you least expect it.
Through all of the adversity, Sallie is persistent and resilient. She and many of the other women in the book are forced to be strong through wretched circumstances. They say it's a man's world... but these characters have other ideas! They discover they can be powerful in unexpected and untraditional ways. As these women come to rely on each other and form bonds, Sallie begins to see the true meaning of family and the different shapes it can take. To protect her family, Sallie must challenge the status-quo, the people in power, and make changes in a world that resists.
I devoured Hang The Moon in one weekend. I found myself rooting for Sallie and many of the other characters, turning pages as quickly as I could to find out what happened next. Hang The Moon is absolute must-read if you love historical fiction. Jeannette Walls has done it once again - just like her previous books, this one is a masterpiece.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Death of parent, and Sexism
Moderate: Abandonment, Alcohol, Cancer, Classism, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Gun violence, Hate crime, and Racism
Minor: Suicide, Cursing, Forced institutionalization, Murder, and Panic attacks/disorders
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