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cjvphd's review
3.0
Copperhead has great potential, but misses the mark mostly due to pretty terrible, melodramatic dialogue.
Now, something that really bothered me (and maybe only me and the chosen few who have lived in Ithaca, NY (6 years, for me)) was the CONSTANT references to things in Ithaca/Cornell that that also found their way into "Cortaca." It was bizarre: Route 13, copious waterfalls, renowned Lab of Ornithology, the Creamery, Spring Festival and Apple Fest on the pedestrian mall (Common), State Street Diner, Collegetown, twenty-something mayor who graduated from the University, etc etc etc. Zentner either really wants this story to be specifically about Ithaca/Cornell, or he was just lazy. I found it extremely distracting, and it diminishes the impact of the novel because the story becomes about a very specific place rather than letting the reader imagine it could be any place in America with a socioeconomic and racial divide.
Now, something that really bothered me (and maybe only me and the chosen few who have lived in Ithaca, NY (6 years, for me)) was the CONSTANT references to things in Ithaca/Cornell that that also found their way into "Cortaca." It was bizarre: Route 13, copious waterfalls, renowned Lab of Ornithology, the Creamery, Spring Festival and Apple Fest on the pedestrian mall (Common), State Street Diner, Collegetown, twenty-something mayor who graduated from the University, etc etc etc. Zentner either really wants this story to be specifically about Ithaca/Cornell, or he was just lazy. I found it extremely distracting, and it diminishes the impact of the novel because the story becomes about a very specific place rather than letting the reader imagine it could be any place in America with a socioeconomic and racial divide.
logoddess's review
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
shinesalot's review
5.0
Looking at racism through the eyes of a poor white boy raised by white supremacists. This is an over simple explanation of this powerful story
annetjeberg's review
3.0
I literally have no other tag for this book than read. Yes, it dealt with some interesting topics, but it was very difficult to read from the perspective of a racist (even though he was a teenager) and I just could not like him. I really wanted him to get caught for what he had done, and have some kind of punishment for the crime he did.
Probably it does represent though a growing group of people, both in the USA and around the world. But I didn't really LIKE the book, or felt invested in the story, though it wasn't bad and read fast after I spent 3 days reading around 26 pages total. Had some issues with the ending... Suddenly everyone was normal and decent non-racist citizens? Like what?
I don't know what to think really.....
Probably it does represent though a growing group of people, both in the USA and around the world. But I didn't really LIKE the book, or felt invested in the story, though it wasn't bad and read fast after I spent 3 days reading around 26 pages total. Had some issues with the ending... Suddenly everyone was normal and decent non-racist citizens? Like what?
I don't know what to think really.....
kirier's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
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? Yes
4.75
rachel2325's review
challenging
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
megatsunami's review
4.0
A very powerful and sometimes painful description of a young man struggling to find the right path forward in the context of his white supremacist family. Jessup lives in upstate New York where he plays football, gets good grades, plans to get out of there once he gets a college acceptance, and takes care of his mom and sister while his stepfather and brother are in prison for a racially motivated crime. But the night his stepfather gets out of jail, a terrible accident leads to consequences that spiral out of Jessup's control.
This book is high energy and I had a hard time putting it down; it's written in short chapters, bursts of text, and the action keeps moving. It was very painful to read at times - Zentner doesn't shy away from depicting overt racism (including an alt-right, white supremacist Christian church) and he also doesn't make his characters one-dimensional. The character of David John (Jessup's stepfather) felt especially complex and real to me as a reader - he is someone who has provided a loving and stable family for Jessup and his siblings and is an exemplary parent, except that he's also inculcated them with his white supremacist beliefs. There aren't too many easy villains here - the white characters say and do terrible things while also acting in a kind and loving way in different contexts. Zentner never wavers from showing the horror (his moral stance as the author is clear, starting with the foreword to the book), and one of the strengths of the book is the way it puts the reader in the uncomfortable position of empathizing with some of the characters while being horrified by their actions.
Throughout the book, Jessup's relation to the violence around him seems to shift constantly, which made sense (he's a young man caught between a lot of immovable forces) but made it hard to believe that he would take a hard turn from "kid who keeps his head down and just wants people to not notice him" to "motivational speaker against racism." (Not saying it's not possible, but Zentner didn't quite take me there.) It seemed like maybe if he hadn't gone to that vigil, he might not have turned things around... which then brings up the question of whether it was a true transformation.
This book is high energy and I had a hard time putting it down; it's written in short chapters, bursts of text, and the action keeps moving. It was very painful to read at times - Zentner doesn't shy away from depicting overt racism (including an alt-right, white supremacist Christian church) and he also doesn't make his characters one-dimensional. The character of David John (Jessup's stepfather) felt especially complex and real to me as a reader - he is someone who has provided a loving and stable family for Jessup and his siblings and is an exemplary parent, except that he's also inculcated them with his white supremacist beliefs. There aren't too many easy villains here - the white characters say and do terrible things while also acting in a kind and loving way in different contexts. Zentner never wavers from showing the horror (his moral stance as the author is clear, starting with the foreword to the book), and one of the strengths of the book is the way it puts the reader in the uncomfortable position of empathizing with some of the characters while being horrified by their actions.
Spoiler
I gotta be honest, for the first half of the book the level of violence and bad-things-happening-to-derail-people-trying-to-do-the-right-thing made me think this book would have a brutal, unhappy ending. But, as is clear from Zentner's foreword, he cares about the morality of his book and does not want to leave readers feeling as if there is no way out of evil. So Jessup gets a redemption, and although I did shed a few tears of emotion as I read it, when I thought about it afterward, the ending felt somewhat unearned from a character standpoint.Throughout the book, Jessup's relation to the violence around him seems to shift constantly, which made sense (he's a young man caught between a lot of immovable forces) but made it hard to believe that he would take a hard turn from "kid who keeps his head down and just wants people to not notice him" to "motivational speaker against racism." (Not saying it's not possible, but Zentner didn't quite take me there.) It seemed like maybe if he hadn't gone to that vigil, he might not have turned things around... which then brings up the question of whether it was a true transformation.
stacey_thebookdragon's review
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
heathersbike's review
5.0
Wow. This is by far the best book I've read this year. A little pat at the end, but still amazing.