Reading Challenge Prompt: A book from a celebrity book club

This was an Oprah book club pick. It was a good read. I wasn't a big fan of the author's writing style.

I bought this book at a used book sale. It was an Oprah book selection which was not really the reason I bought it. That said this book was a total bore. The author, a man, writing from a women's perspective was not believable at all.

I skimmed over a lot of the wordy, repetitive paragraphs that could have been condensed into a few sentences.

Oh well, hope my next book is better then this one.

Morgan has created the most simple yet fascinating characters, their words are so straightforward and the life they lead is so physically and mentally demanding. I was definitely left wanting more and to know how Julie and Hank ended up years later.

One of my favorite books of all time is Winter Wheat by Mildred Walker and Gap Creek has a very similar feel. It’s an easy and extremely enjoyable read.

Julie, you would’ve loved feminism

This book was good in parts, almost exhausting just to read. I found myself zoning out frequently while reading. Maybe just not my type of genre.

I feel like this was a Barnes and Noble "Free Friday" book but I'm not 100% sure.. Either way, I hope I didn't spend money on it. This was one of the most depressing things I've read in quite some time.. a book of one hardship after another, after another.. It took me 2 months to get through it! Granted, I'm busy.. but not THAT busy. OY. I am that person that makes myself finish books, so there you have it 0 that is the ONLY reason I stuck with it. The VERY end had a redeeming quality, and I guess finally provided some closure for all the depressing themes.. but boy, you really have to tough it out to get to that point.
2 stars because I liked the author's use of dialect and characterization. That's it.

I picked up a nice copy of this book from my library book sale for 10 cents awhile back. I decided to read it this week as my final book for the Southern Literature Challenge because it won the Southern Book Critic Circle Award.

However, it is also an Oprah book. Next time I pick up an Oprah book, somebody please just slap me. This book is more depressing than a sunless day in January. How depressing? Read on...

***Spoilers***

Set in 1899, the book opens with 17-year old protagonist Julie Harmon describing the gruesome death of her younger brother. That's followed with the death of her father. Then she marries Hank, whom she has known for all of a few days. They move down from the mountains of North Carolina to the Appalachian valley over the border in South Carolina. Julie takes care of a nasty old widower in exchange for free rent while Hank works in town making bricks.

We get a lot of detail into their tough and rugged lives, including an in-depth look into the slaughtering of a hog. Julie burns down the kitchen, the widower dies, they are swindled out of every dime they own, Hank smacks Julie around and loses his job, they loose what little they have left in a flood, Julie gives birth to a premature baby that subsequently dies, and then they get tossed out of the house.

And that's the end.

I'm only giving it two stars instead of one because I liked this passage:

The good Lord made the world so we could earn our joy, Ma said. But it's no guarantee we'll ever be happy.

I agree with the concept that we have to work hard to earn joy and happiness in life. And sometimes I think happiness is a decision. However, I know that life can be difficult and even brutal. I just would have appreciated a little more sunshine in this book.

This gentle book tells the story of Julie, as she navigates the death of her brother and father and the first year or so of her marriage to Hank, lived in the valley of Gap Creek, South Carolina as the 19th century comes to a close. Julie and Hank are young and poor. They struggle and grow together through challenging events. The story is told by Julie, who begins the book as a physically strong youth whose attitude is that, if it needs to be done, you just get on with it. The tone feels authentic and I felt like I struggled with poor Julie as she tries to figure out her place in the world. I loved the way color was used in the novel to describe emotional events. I also loved reading an honest narrator.

Written in the terse language of the mountain people but woven in poetry, Gap Creek is the story of a life and marriage that not only survives but grows through pain, poverty and terrible loss. I felt as if I’d stepped back in time as I read, but also as if these characters were my people and their lives were mine and my neighbors. Each chapter is a drawing back to a home you never knew you had or left. Every page is a feast for the senses, making the past and the cast of characters come alive.

“Work ain’t nothing but work.” -Julie
Proof that in the hands of a gifted author and poet you can feel the joy, the pain, the fear and the presence of God in everyday events (even if they are from a different time and place) without resorting to shock, fantasy murder or international conspiracies.

A cumbersome and unhurried story of sufferings and hope that is simple and ragged, but never seems to keep a winning pace. This couple’s misfortunes are sometimes unbelievable.

I was looking at the reviews of this book and it seems that it was either loved or hated, with few in between. I am happy to report that I loved it. It takes place around 1900 in Appalachia, both North Carolina and South Carolina. The story is told by 17-18 year old Julie, who is one of the best heroines ever created. She is hardworking, tough, strong, no-nonsense, and loves the outdoors. She finds joy in small things. She marries for love, though she grows up that first year of her marriage. One thing I remember-and it stands out to me as friends and I have had this very discussion-is how disconcerting it is when Julie discovers that of the two of them, she is the stronger mentally.
There is a scene early on in her marriage where her husband slaps her and calls her a “heifer” when she is duped and naively hands over money. That sort of thing is tough to read, and I wish she had spoken up, and I suppose this was more common during this era, but it bothered me. A lot of readers did not like the description of the hog-killing, or the laying out of a dead body, etc. I appreciated these descriptions because it was true to life in this area of the country, and life and living were tremendously difficult. And I suppose the slap was too.
An excellent read, with a main character who is unforgettable in her strength.