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nataly_thevelveteenpage's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
5.0
I am very much shaken that Eyes of Sleeping Children is D. A. Butcher's first work of fiction.
This monolithic debut is a visceral and riveting homage to the American literature and history so favoured by the author. Set in the 1930s, the era of "The Dust Bowl", a time when drought and dust storms severely impacted agriculture and economy among the prairies, we follow a family man on a journey of unravelment.
There is a dry, darkness to this story that is both melancholic and all consuming. The consistent undertone of dread marks each page, each moment, each eventuality with the bleak and unapologetic stain of inevitability. Each character is raw and realistic in all their flaws, their humanity drawing on your anger and empathy for connection, the very thing that will keep you reading.
With such character realism integrated into the subtle but succinct description of the landscape, you are transported almost cinematically to the fictional town of Ash Valley, Kansas. The words form the reel in your mind from which the images play, expanding and unfolding right behind your eyes, the effects of which are devastating.
You will be held captive by the equally heartwarming and horrifying narrative right through to its crescendo, which manifests as a powerfully significant and emotional finale, an incredible feat for most books -- this here being a bold, unforgiving and unforgettable debut.
This monolithic debut is a visceral and riveting homage to the American literature and history so favoured by the author. Set in the 1930s, the era of "The Dust Bowl", a time when drought and dust storms severely impacted agriculture and economy among the prairies, we follow a family man on a journey of unravelment.
There is a dry, darkness to this story that is both melancholic and all consuming. The consistent undertone of dread marks each page, each moment, each eventuality with the bleak and unapologetic stain of inevitability. Each character is raw and realistic in all their flaws, their humanity drawing on your anger and empathy for connection, the very thing that will keep you reading.
With such character realism integrated into the subtle but succinct description of the landscape, you are transported almost cinematically to the fictional town of Ash Valley, Kansas. The words form the reel in your mind from which the images play, expanding and unfolding right behind your eyes, the effects of which are devastating.
You will be held captive by the equally heartwarming and horrifying narrative right through to its crescendo, which manifests as a powerfully significant and emotional finale, an incredible feat for most books -- this here being a bold, unforgiving and unforgettable debut.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Violence
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