You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.88 AVERAGE
3.88 AVERAGE
Most of this was good. I enjoy unexplained terminology and meandering narrative. There were many characters though and I definitely had trouble remembering everybody.
Due to how it was written, one tiny POV presenting us, constant reader, with a tiny amount of day, the novel never delved deep into any specific plotlines because the overarching story was too grand to tell. I found myself thinking at times this could be an 800 page novel.
On the flip side, it could be seen as us being given only the juiciest bits of information so that we could keep on flowing through a year in the life of these three people. And that's okay.
Then there's the ending. Corny.
Due to how it was written, one tiny POV presenting us, constant reader, with a tiny amount of day, the novel never delved deep into any specific plotlines because the overarching story was too grand to tell. I found myself thinking at times this could be an 800 page novel.
On the flip side, it could be seen as us being given only the juiciest bits of information so that we could keep on flowing through a year in the life of these three people. And that's okay.
Then there's the ending. Corny.
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I felt like there was a lot of build up with very little pay off. Too many things were just abruptly ended or abandoned all together.
First line: Rich nabbed the week's mail from Lark's box and swung off the Eel Road, bumping down the muddy two-track past a pair of show toilets.
I kind of love this first line because it drops you into the story, and it lures you in with "show toilets" rather than a flash of anticipation of what's to come.
Anyway, Damantion Spring is the story of a logging family (Rich's) in a part of California where logging has almost run its course. The community is a shadow of its former size when logging in the area was at its peak. Rich's wife is a midwife of sorts for the community, and she personally has lost several babies to miscarriages and an early birth, but she's starting to realize that the problem is not just her. Could something be causing the miscarriages and birth defects?
I thought this was very much a story for the modern era as environmentalism was dawning and the damage we were wreacking on the planet was starting to become understood, but resistance to this knowledge was also strong because of the threat to people's livelihoods and way of life.
I had a gnawing pit in the stomach for much of this book waiting for "the terrible thing" to happen in a place where terrible things were almost an every day occurence. You know how you know that something bad is going to happen in a book and you keep waiting and waiting? Sometimes, that anticipation is the hardest part. Other times, it is not.
I kind of love this first line because it drops you into the story, and it lures you in with "show toilets" rather than a flash of anticipation of what's to come.
Anyway, Damantion Spring is the story of a logging family (Rich's) in a part of California where logging has almost run its course. The community is a shadow of its former size when logging in the area was at its peak. Rich's wife is a midwife of sorts for the community, and she personally has lost several babies to miscarriages and an early birth, but she's starting to realize that the problem is not just her. Could something be causing the miscarriages and birth defects?
I thought this was very much a story for the modern era as environmentalism was dawning and the damage we were wreacking on the planet was starting to become understood, but resistance to this knowledge was also strong because of the threat to people's livelihoods and way of life.
I had a gnawing pit in the stomach for much of this book waiting for "the terrible thing" to happen in a place where terrible things were almost an every day occurence. You know how you know that something bad is going to happen in a book and you keep waiting and waiting? Sometimes, that anticipation is the hardest part. Other times, it is not.
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I gave up on this on p. 114 because I just wasn't getting interested. The book has a very slow pace, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it also has very short chapters that jump between characters every couple of pages -- a structure typical of more fast-paced books. It's kind of the worst of both worlds. Nothing much it happening, but the narrative doesn't settle on a single character for long enough to create much depth. Aside from the central couple, most of the characters are kind of a blur, sometimes bordering on caricature.
The author clearly did a lot of research into the logging industry, which is important, but I think she employs a level of detail about what she learned that isn't necessary to the reader. The book gets bogged down in all these descriptions, making some of the Rich-centric chapters so filled with technical jargon that it's not always clear what's happening or why it's significant.
This book has been getting lots of praise, so it's clearly working for lots of people, but it's really not working for me, so I'm moving on to something else.
The author clearly did a lot of research into the logging industry, which is important, but I think she employs a level of detail about what she learned that isn't necessary to the reader. The book gets bogged down in all these descriptions, making some of the Rich-centric chapters so filled with technical jargon that it's not always clear what's happening or why it's significant.
This book has been getting lots of praise, so it's clearly working for lots of people, but it's really not working for me, so I'm moving on to something else.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Miscarriage
dark
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The main theme of this book seemed to be “life is hard, and then you die” with little hope, redemption, depth of character and true story line. The synopsis sounded interesting and I was looking forward to the Northern California setting, but unfortunately the execution fell flat for me. I did not like the characters and was constantly annoyed by their choices, decisions and conversations. There was a whininess portrayed in the audiobook that drove me crazy. There was also a discouraging lack of development in both characters and plot. Many of the situations felt sloppily thrown together, missing an important cohesiveness and overall resolve. The ending just added to my annoyance at the entire book.
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Man, I'm leaving this unrated for the moment because I just don't know.
Richly written, with excellent character building, but didn't stick the landing. I really need to highlight the work Davidson puts into writing realistic characters: it's easy to slip into stereotypes and caricature with rural people and their lives, but they feel so human. I don't like most of them, but that's fine. Colleen, Enid, and Daniel stand out as my favorites.
But man, that ending. For a book that's all buildup, that's where it goes? Maybe I'll get it better on a reread.
The main reason I'm withholding a rating is the portrayal of the Yurok characters. I'm non Native myself, so I can't speak to it, but I'll be looking for Native reviewers' thoughts on the story. I liked Daniel personally, but something about the way he was written struck me as off, especially with the modern day climate where water protectors are still fighting his same battle.
Richly written, with excellent character building, but didn't stick the landing. I really need to highlight the work Davidson puts into writing realistic characters: it's easy to slip into stereotypes and caricature with rural people and their lives, but they feel so human. I don't like most of them, but that's fine. Colleen, Enid, and Daniel stand out as my favorites.
But man, that ending. For a book that's all buildup, that's where it goes? Maybe I'll get it better on a reread.
The main reason I'm withholding a rating is the portrayal of the Yurok characters. I'm non Native myself, so I can't speak to it, but I'll be looking for Native reviewers' thoughts on the story. I liked Daniel personally, but something about the way he was written struck me as off, especially with the modern day climate where water protectors are still fighting his same battle.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Terminal illness, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Alcohol
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated