Scan barcode
camtheobscure's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
book_concierge's review against another edition
5.0
Jim Glass turns ten as this novel opens. It is June 1934 and Jim and his mother live with his Uncle Zeno, right next door to his two other uncles, Al and Coran. The men farm, operate a grist mill, cotton gin and feed store. Jim’s mother, Cissy, is their sister and keeps house for them. Jim’s father died suddenly a week before Jim was born. He died without ever reconciling with his father, Amos Glass, who is a mountain man and former convict. As a result, Jim has never met his grandfather.
Earley’s debut novel is quiet, peaceful and yet powerful. I think my heart rate actually slowed while reading; it was that gentle. And yet there are heartaches in the novel, and some frightening situations. The story may focus on one boy, his family and friends but the lessons conveyed are universal. We all make mistakes; we might have selfish or mean thoughts but can overcome those impulses; jealousy can poison a relationship; when we succeed it’s frequently because of the help of others; even adults can marvel at new discoveries; doing what is right may be hard but is part of growing up.
Jim is a wonderful character. He starts the novel feeling so BIG now that he writes his age in double digits “just like the uncles.” He is eager to grow up and take on the responsibilities of adulthood, but his first experience in the field shows him to be still a child – easily distracted by an interesting bug or even a rock that might be an arrowhead. He has always been a star pupil but when a new, larger school is built new students from surrounding areas come in and suddenly he has competition. Jim is stunned to discover that “a hillbilly” might be better at some things than he is. Accompanying Uncle Zeno to buy a horse, he leaves “the boundaries of home” for the first time and begins to witness the effects of the Great Depression. Slowly he becomes aware that instead of being big, he is really rather small, “I’m just a boy.” Perhaps, but he is a boy growing towards manhood.
Earley’s writing is luminous. There were several passages that I read over and over they were so evocative. For example, this passage describing early morning:
The world at that early hour seemed newly made, unfinished; the air, stills wet with dew, an invention thought up that morning…. The sky, in a moment Jim didn’t notice until the moment had passed, turned blue, as if it had never tried the color before and wasn’t sure anyone would like it.
On his mother’s grief:
The death of Jim’s father had broken something inside her that had not healed. She pulled the heaviness that had once been grief behind her like a plow.
On seeing the ocean for the first time:
The sand was burning his feet. Once they reached the beach the sand was cooler, but the roar of the water was fiercer than it had been up on the dune. Jim could taste the salty water, broken up and falling through the air.
On the first day of school:
The previous morning had smelled only like summer, like dew and grass and crops growing in the fields. But this morning the air bore the suggestion of books and pencils and chalky erasers, the pronounced end of long, slow days.
And a sunset:
Jim and the uncles watched the last yellow light of the day slide up the mountain toward the bald, dragging evening behind it. When the light went out of their faces, they turned and watched it retreat up the peak, where at the summit a single tree flared defiantly before going dark … All but the brightest greens had drained out of the world, leaving in their stead an array of somber blues.
This short gem of a novel should be read by more people. It is simply marvelous.
carolrinke's review against another edition
5.0
Leslie wrote this review @ it represents my thoughts so well.
Maybe it's because I'm finishing this book late at night in my quiet house, but it really has touched me, especially the last 5 pages or so. A really simply, yet powerfully told story of a young boy, Jim, whose life is small but whose challenges are startlingly big. Earley's style is lovely, I found beauty on every page. Would love to read more of his work.
This passage is from page 8.
"'There he is,' Mama said. 'The birthday boy.'
Jim's heart rose up briefly, like a scrap of paper on a breath of wind, and then quickly settled back to the ground. His love for his mother was tethered by a sympathy Jim felt knotted in the dark of his stomach. The death of Jim's father had broken something inside her that had not healed. She pulled the heaviness that had once been grief behind her like a plow. The uncles, the women of the church, the people of the town, had long since given up on trying to talk her into leaving the plow where it lay. Instead they grew used to stepping over, or walking inside, the deep furrows she left in her wake. Jim knew only that his mother was sad, and that he figured somehow in her sadness. When she leaned over to kiss him, the lilaced smell of her cheek was as sweet and sad at once as the smell of freshly turned earth in the churchyard."
Maybe it's because I'm finishing this book late at night in my quiet house, but it really has touched me, especially the last 5 pages or so. A really simply, yet powerfully told story of a young boy, Jim, whose life is small but whose challenges are startlingly big. Earley's style is lovely, I found beauty on every page. Would love to read more of his work.
This passage is from page 8.
"'There he is,' Mama said. 'The birthday boy.'
Jim's heart rose up briefly, like a scrap of paper on a breath of wind, and then quickly settled back to the ground. His love for his mother was tethered by a sympathy Jim felt knotted in the dark of his stomach. The death of Jim's father had broken something inside her that had not healed. She pulled the heaviness that had once been grief behind her like a plow. The uncles, the women of the church, the people of the town, had long since given up on trying to talk her into leaving the plow where it lay. Instead they grew used to stepping over, or walking inside, the deep furrows she left in her wake. Jim knew only that his mother was sad, and that he figured somehow in her sadness. When she leaned over to kiss him, the lilaced smell of her cheek was as sweet and sad at once as the smell of freshly turned earth in the churchyard."
owlswithfins's review against another edition
2.0
Okay, this might be kind of long, but I want to make it accurate. When I first found out we had to read the book, I was like "Oh, great. Another boring book required for school." Then, I heard one of my favorite teachers say it was a wonderful book, so I attempted to enjoy it. For a while, I was interested. During a few chapters, I couldn't put the book down! Part four was really interesting and I loved the book! But...then I got to a long and boring description. And another. And another. For a while, that's all it was: a giant, boring, long description. My mind wandered from Jim to enchiladas and lip balm (okay, maybe a little less random, but you get the point).
Another problem I had was that I couldn't stand Jim. Throughout the entire book he's selfish and mean. He doesn't want to give Abraham the good hoe; he refuses to let Penn use his glove. I just couldn't connect with a character like that!
There were definitely good parts and bad parts, but overall, the book didn't hold my attention for very long. The writing was phenomenal, with it's figurative language, but the story and plot just wasn't there. This book was better than I'd expected, but I still didn't really like it.
Another problem I had was that I couldn't stand Jim. Throughout the entire book he's selfish and mean. He doesn't want to give Abraham the good hoe; he refuses to let Penn use his glove. I just couldn't connect with a character like that!
There were definitely good parts and bad parts, but overall, the book didn't hold my attention for very long. The writing was phenomenal, with it's figurative language, but the story and plot just wasn't there. This book was better than I'd expected, but I still didn't really like it.
kelseywelsey's review against another edition
3.0
A year in the life of a 10 year old boy during The Depression, the perfect mixture of innocence and coming-of-age; a delicate balance of light and dark. Understated but beautiful. Lots of great metaphor. Earley has a way with words that looks and feels simple but that mastery is precisely what had me rereading sentences throughout the book.
I especially loved Book II: Jim Leaves Home: The Wide Sea where buzzards grab the air with their wings, climbing the sky; fish vanish as if made of light; and Jim with feet in the ocean for the first time, trying to feel Belgium, instead feels the water writing strange words on his feet.
I especially loved Book II: Jim Leaves Home: The Wide Sea where buzzards grab the air with their wings, climbing the sky; fish vanish as if made of light; and Jim with feet in the ocean for the first time, trying to feel Belgium, instead feels the water writing strange words on his feet.
melvankomen's review against another edition
5.0
A lovely, spare, wonderfully written book. I admired the writer's craft and enjoyed a novel at the same time -- a rare combination.
cdehlert's review against another edition
2.0
This is a novel about a boy growing up in a small North Carolina town in the 1930s with his mom and uncles. It was okay and a fast read but there wasn't much of a plot.