Reviews with content warning for Rape - Demon Copperhead

I truly loved this book. One of Kingsolver's best. It is a brilliant retelling of David Copperfield, but it reads well even if you're not familiar with that classic.

I was very moved by Demon's plight. Even though it was very emotionally difficult to read, I feel grateful to have learned so much through Kingsolver's gorgeous writing about that part of our country, the terrible faultiness of our foster care system, and the opioid crisis.

It was long, but I felt it was well-paced, well-edited, and not at all too complicated or technically challenging. I can't say it's an "easy read" because the subject matter is dark and sad, but the writing itself is very well organized and easy to follow.

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maggievictory's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This book felt trapped in staying true to David Copperfield at times. Even though I also love Dickens, the parts that were original to Demon's story, like the opioid crisis, high school sports culture, and modern foster care, were by far the most compelling aspects of the book.

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sjanke2's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

This is a challenging book, both in the sense of Demon's stream-of-consciousness voice and the trials he endures. But after 50 pages, one's brain adapts to Kingsolver's writing style. The audiobook narrator helped in developing a stride. Demon goes through so much, and there's a balance of both good and bad influences in the side characters. I also appreciated Kingsolver's strong stance on the war wreaked upon Appalachians by land grabbers, mining companies, and Big Pharma.

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