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A review by letitiaharmon
House of Purple Cedar by Tim Tingle
3.0
It's fine, if not great. Although the writing is mediocre and simplistic, there's still something to be said for a storyline that does beg the reader to stick with it to the end. Some may even prefer the straightforward and inelegant writing style. My biggest objection was actually the cartoonish villain. One must wonder why, in a town where he is universally loathed and avoided, no one does away with him sooner. Combine this with the fact that the main family is without a single discernible flaw, and the characters seem flat and unrealistic.
It's the isolation of racism down to this single, garishly objectionable marshal that doesn't really do the story any favors. It makes it seem as though anti-Choctaw prejudice is something that could be boiled down to one man, and although he holds the power of law enforcement and racial privilege, he doesn't hold any popularity or reflect the overall sentiment of the town in which this is placed. I think it would be far more realistic to illustrate how such a terrible man is propped up by the racist attitudes that were broadly accepted by the community.
The highlight of this book is actually Maggie and Terrence's thoroughly delightful side story, which has little to no relevance to any other events in the book, and does not impact the outcome, but has characters engaging enough to make them my favorite part. So clearly Tingle can write amusing, endearing, and multifaceted characters, but he didn't use those for his main protagonists or antagonist.
Is is those lovable side stories, combined with an underlying sense of dread and wondering how the conflict will be resolved, that holds the reader's interest. There is a throughline, and it is interesting, but would have benefited from more complexity.
It's the isolation of racism down to this single, garishly objectionable marshal that doesn't really do the story any favors. It makes it seem as though anti-Choctaw prejudice is something that could be boiled down to one man, and although he holds the power of law enforcement and racial privilege, he doesn't hold any popularity or reflect the overall sentiment of the town in which this is placed. I think it would be far more realistic to illustrate how such a terrible man is propped up by the racist attitudes that were broadly accepted by the community.
The highlight of this book is actually Maggie and Terrence's thoroughly delightful side story, which has little to no relevance to any other events in the book, and does not impact the outcome, but has characters engaging enough to make them my favorite part. So clearly Tingle can write amusing, endearing, and multifaceted characters, but he didn't use those for his main protagonists or antagonist.
Is is those lovable side stories, combined with an underlying sense of dread and wondering how the conflict will be resolved, that holds the reader's interest. There is a throughline, and it is interesting, but would have benefited from more complexity.