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3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
What a book to start the year off with. It was dark, gritty, depressing, and there's no happy ending here. In fact, there's really not much of an ending at all. The first half was tough to get through. It was rather boring and I considered putting it down. The second half was much better, but again, it was so dark and depressing that I wouldn't say I actually enjoyed it.
A big book but a fast read because it's so darn good. Disturbing and moving, eye-opening... Didn't want to put it down.
So this book was well written and kept me reading, so why the 2 stars. Because never have I read a book so bleak, so depressing, so utterly without hope. Basically, anything horrible that could happen to any of the characters does happen. It’s relentless.
Golly, this is a great book. Prior to reading, I somehow had the impression that "Fourth Of July Creek" was simply a crime thriller with an interesting setting and some positive critical buzz. As it turns out, Smith Henderson's debut is an epic tragedy of rural America that reminds me of Denis Johnson, Claire Vaye Watkins, and Cormac McCarthy.
Set at the start of the 1980s in the mountainous wilderness of western Montana, this novel is about an eventful year in the life of a social worker named Pete Snow. Social work seems like such fertile ground for dramatic and episodic storytelling, that it's odd that there isn't more pop culture on the subject. Henderson has done his research, and he convincingly relates Pete's routine of home visits, court appearances, and pick-ups/drop-offs. To compliment the range of domestic problems he faces in his work, Pete has an impressive share of his own - binge drinking, a brother on the lam after viciously beating his parole officer, and separation from his wife and teenage daughter. Pete's troubled daughter, Rachel, provides the parallel narrative running through the novel. Her chapters are presented as stylized questionnaires, a risky literary decision that ends up working beautifully instead of becoming a gimmick.
After Pete picks up a filthy and malnourished boy found lurking around the school, his path crosses with that of the child's father, a paranoid-apocalyptic-conspiracy-touting patriarch named Jeremiah Pearl. Pearl is an intriguing and frightening character - especially in our present era of domestic terrorism - but Henderson imbues him with increasing complexity and humanity as the book climbs toward a shocking revelation at its conclusion.
"Fourth Of July Creek" is a novel that manages to be downright addictive while telling its story at a near leisurely pace. Some of its magnetism is due to the vivid sense of place in Henderson's native Montana; some of it is due to the rugged poetry of his prose and dialogue. A great deal comes from its gloriously messed-up hero: Pete is one of the most compelling fictional protagonists I've ever encountered, and I'm holding out hope that Henderson uses him in some sequels. Aside from some insignificant quibbles about female characters and the piling on of hardships, this is an overwhelmingly good book. I recommend pairing it with "Preparation For The Next Life" for a sobering examination of neglected lives in the countrysides and cityscapes, respectively, of the United States.
Set at the start of the 1980s in the mountainous wilderness of western Montana, this novel is about an eventful year in the life of a social worker named Pete Snow. Social work seems like such fertile ground for dramatic and episodic storytelling, that it's odd that there isn't more pop culture on the subject. Henderson has done his research, and he convincingly relates Pete's routine of home visits, court appearances, and pick-ups/drop-offs. To compliment the range of domestic problems he faces in his work, Pete has an impressive share of his own - binge drinking, a brother on the lam after viciously beating his parole officer, and separation from his wife and teenage daughter. Pete's troubled daughter, Rachel, provides the parallel narrative running through the novel. Her chapters are presented as stylized questionnaires, a risky literary decision that ends up working beautifully instead of becoming a gimmick.
After Pete picks up a filthy and malnourished boy found lurking around the school, his path crosses with that of the child's father, a paranoid-apocalyptic-conspiracy-touting patriarch named Jeremiah Pearl. Pearl is an intriguing and frightening character - especially in our present era of domestic terrorism - but Henderson imbues him with increasing complexity and humanity as the book climbs toward a shocking revelation at its conclusion.
"Fourth Of July Creek" is a novel that manages to be downright addictive while telling its story at a near leisurely pace. Some of its magnetism is due to the vivid sense of place in Henderson's native Montana; some of it is due to the rugged poetry of his prose and dialogue. A great deal comes from its gloriously messed-up hero: Pete is one of the most compelling fictional protagonists I've ever encountered, and I'm holding out hope that Henderson uses him in some sequels. Aside from some insignificant quibbles about female characters and the piling on of hardships, this is an overwhelmingly good book. I recommend pairing it with "Preparation For The Next Life" for a sobering examination of neglected lives in the countrysides and cityscapes, respectively, of the United States.
[b:Fourth of July Creek|18651980|Fourth of July Creek|Smith Henderson|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1417981221l/18651980._SY75_.jpg|26112550] I have had this book since it first came out. I tried to start a few times but the times weren't right yet for me. No that with the world in this condition now is a good time to read it but maybe it is after all. So many people have reviewed this book so well on Good Reads, I will refrain. But please give it a try. So well told.
Pete's a social worker in a small Montana town – he spends his life trying to help the down-and-out take care of their kids. When things get really bad, he tries to make sure the kids end up in a decent situation. But he's not much good at being a father, or taking care of his own life. Things really fall apart when his wife moves to Texas with his daughter. About the same time, Pete gets mixed up with a kid, Ben, and his mysterious father, Pearl. Pearl is a survivalist, living out in the forest with his son awaiting the end of the world. All Pete seems to want is to make sure Ben's OK, but as his own life falls apart, maybe something of their life away from society appeals to Pete. And then there's the lingering question, asked but never answered: where's Pearl's wife, and their other five kids?
Fourth of July Creek is a complex book, with so much happening, all densely layered atop each other. Pete searches for Pearl, tries to rebuild his family, fails at so much. It's beautifully written, evocative, and at times troubling. Might be a bit slow for some readers, but well worth a read.
Fourth of July Creek is a complex book, with so much happening, all densely layered atop each other. Pete searches for Pearl, tries to rebuild his family, fails at so much. It's beautifully written, evocative, and at times troubling. Might be a bit slow for some readers, but well worth a read.
Top 10 by wapo 2014
Hard to decide bw 4-5 stars. The only turnoff were some of the vulgar scenes that seemed a bit more graphic than necessary. Story was powerful. Liked how everything was Not tied up in perfect packages in the end.
About a social worker who tries to save children in rural Montana. Audio very well done!
Hard to decide bw 4-5 stars. The only turnoff were some of the vulgar scenes that seemed a bit more graphic than necessary. Story was powerful. Liked how everything was Not tied up in perfect packages in the end.
About a social worker who tries to save children in rural Montana. Audio very well done!
I had a hard time rating this one. I hated the characters, including good old Pete, but the story was oddly compelling.
I have to say that I did not love this book while I was reading it. It paints a grim and gritty picture of the world, something that I want to believe is a least a little a bit lighter. I also found some of the authors stylistic decisions to be personally bothersome. What's with asking textual questions without a terminating question mark. See. However, somehow, by the end of the book, he had me. The ending was emotional and both satisfying and unsatisfying, which so often bears a startling resemblance to reality. A pretty good read, in the end.