Reviews with content warning for Child abuse - Demon Copperhead

This book was a gut punch from start to finish. Having not read David Copperfield, which this book is a retelling of, I did not know what to expect. As Barbara Kingsolver discusses briefly in the acknowledgement, it is a look into the institutional poverty of the Appalachian region of the United States, and how coal and opiates have effectively ruined any chance for rural communities to thrive. Throughout every step of Demon's journey I wanted only the best for him, and to tell him everything would be okay, despite his self destructive actions reinforced by the world he's living in.

I would highly recommend this book to better understand, as a city folk, how the 'other half' live so we can better influence the discussion at a national level.

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amanda_reads13's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring 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? Yes

5.0

Demon Copperhead (Damon), son of a drug addicted young mother, takes us through his life as he fights to survive all that life throws at him.

Demon is the voice of the impoverished, opiod addicted, abandoned people of Appalachia. His voice is incredibly unique and his story tell one of resilencey, loyalty, and pride. This book never stops as he ensures foster care, child labour, the broken education system, addiction, and crushing losses. This book is messy, emotional, and intense. This story could have been very bleak, yet within the pages is a tale of hope with a touch of humor.

The book is so beautifully written and the setting plays almost like a secondary character in how intertwined and vivid it is.

Demon is an immensely flawed, but likable character. We're rooting for him to succeed. He ensures abandonment, abuse, homelessness, addiction, and so much loss. His life forces him to grow up so fast, otherwise he literally would not survive. Yet, through all he endured, he does just that, he survives and perseveres.

We are introduced to so many other interesting and captivating characters along the way. They all played such an important role in his life. Maggot, the lost soul just trying to survive while being so different. Tommy, the soft hearted man who pulls himself up against insurmountable odds. The Peggots, the kind hearted neighbours who help as much as they can. Dorie, the lost girl who could never be saved. Angus, the girl who supported him no matter what. His teachers, who encouraged and supported him to follow his dream of drawing. This is such a memorable cast of characters.

Unfortunately, the author does lean very heavily on the stereotypes of the Appalachia region. Every stereotype you can think of about that region happens Demon in this book. I wish that there would have been a little more breaking stereotypes rather than amplifying them. That said, I did think that Demon was a very interesting and captivating character.

With so many heavy topics addressed in this book, it does veer towards feeling preechy or like a lecture at times.

I really liked the ending.

Demon has fought his battles and won, what comes next is left to the imagination, but it ends in a note of hope.

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defiantturtle's review against another edition

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The writing style was difficult for me to read. There were too many run on sentences and cases where sentences just seemed to end in the wrong spot. It was also a bit too depressing. Most of the characters were unlikable. The final straw was the narrator calling a non-Christian religion "some whole other Christianity". I'm not sure if that was supposed to be funny, but it just made me annoyed.

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