Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
The Evening Hour: A Novel
by
Carter Sickels (Goodreads Author)
Most of the wealth in Dove Creek, West Virginia, is in the earth-in the coal seams that have provided generations with a way of life. Born and raised here, twenty-seven-year-old Cole Freeman has sidestepped work as a miner to become an aide in a nursing home. He's got a shock of bleached blond hair and a gentle touch well suited to the job. He's also a drug dealer, reselli...more
Paperback, 327 pages
Published
January 17th 2012
by Bloomsbury USA
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
This book is not yet featured on Listopia.
Add this book to your favorite list »
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
335)
Cole Freeman is a wonderfully textured character: a nursing home aide that tenderly cares for the elderly while stealing from them and selling drugs on the side; abandoned by his mom; raised by his grandparents in the fire of his granddad's harsh sermons. Cole's hunger and restlessness drive the book with a really solid throb: "What do I have? he thought. Pain pills, stashed cash, and jewelry he'd stolen from old doddering ladies. A stack of postcards. And a thousand useless Bible verses" (78)....more
Carter Sickels sets this contemporary novel in a West Virginia community where a multimillion dollar mining coming is removing the tops of mountains and extracting the remaining coal from the earth. The characters are the real Americans; they are not attractive, smart, rich, educated or worldly. They live within the confines of a small community with little opportunity and few dreams. The central character is Cole Freeman. He is 27 years old and works as an aide in a nursing home. In addition Co...more
Disappointing. Sickels seems to bite off more than he can chew. Mountaintop removal and drug running are both ample subjects, but trying to focus on both of them leaves less time to devote to just one of them. Add in some religious conflict, broken families, and social and class issues, and there's just too much happening in one book. On top of this, Sickels' writing style sometimes fails to impress; awkward conversations are played out with every bit of dialogue given, and some dramatic scenes...more
A compelling read. I didn't think this was a character that I was going to warm to, but I grew to care about him and his community. Really like how the old people were presented without stereotyping, each is different in his or her own way.
Cole works as a nurses aide in a nursing home with a little drug dealing on the side. He was abandoned by his mother soon after his birth and was raised by his fundamentalist grandparents. The coal company is one of the area's main employers, so even though m...more
Cole works as a nurses aide in a nursing home with a little drug dealing on the side. He was abandoned by his mother soon after his birth and was raised by his fundamentalist grandparents. The coal company is one of the area's main employers, so even though m...more
I love it when I stumble across a book that ends up being a gratifying read.
That's what happened with The Evening Hour , Carter Sickels' debut novel. I saw a short review of it somewhere but don't remember what it was that prompted me to put it on the reserve list at the library. Even after I brought it home I almost didn't read it. The description on the back cover just didn't sound like the type of book I like. I gave it a chance and after reading it in two sittings over less than 24 hours, i...more
That's what happened with The Evening Hour , Carter Sickels' debut novel. I saw a short review of it somewhere but don't remember what it was that prompted me to put it on the reserve list at the library. Even after I brought it home I almost didn't read it. The description on the back cover just didn't sound like the type of book I like. I gave it a chance and after reading it in two sittings over less than 24 hours, i...more
Review contains some discussion that might be considered spoilers. But its essential for the review.
Maybe I shouldn't have tried to read this book. I might be too close to the subject matter. But that's exactly what drew me to The Evening Hour. I keep waiting for that book that gets Appalachia, that understands the complicated relationship we have with coal. My mother works in mine permitting, consulting coal companies, climbing mountains and mapping streams. She's worked directly for coal compa...more
Maybe I shouldn't have tried to read this book. I might be too close to the subject matter. But that's exactly what drew me to The Evening Hour. I keep waiting for that book that gets Appalachia, that understands the complicated relationship we have with coal. My mother works in mine permitting, consulting coal companies, climbing mountains and mapping streams. She's worked directly for coal compa...more
Setting, setting, setting: A well-written portrayal of life in the backwoods and hollers of today's Appalachia. Cole Freeman (ha! get it?) lives in Dove Creek, West Virginia, in the heart of coal-mining country, where the beauty of the land and the way of life of the people are being devastated by the corporate coal-mining companies. In the face of overwhelming and soul-crushing poverty, people are selling their ancestral homes and land to the mining companies that are scraping the tops off the...more
This was a good summer read and a departure from some of the pure action books I ususally read. The setting in West Virginia coal mining country is both beautiful and bleak. The protagonist is a confused young man who has a good heart, but is a thief and prescription drug dealer. I found myself wanting him to escape his situation, but also questioning what he would be running towards. His family and history was rooted in West Virginia. If he ran to a larger city, he would be connected to no one....more
I love when I grab a book because I can't find anything else to read, and it turns out to be a satisfying, challenging read. A topical setting - a mountain region in the Appalachians, coal mining, drug infestations, complicated familial relationships, torn friendships, challenging- sometimes even repellant, characters, this book had it all. Oh, and snakes! My opinions of the characters kept changing, they were well rounded, difficult and yet somehow, lovable. The author managed to richly describ...more
This is a book for our current times. In the USA and Australia in particular there are small communities suffering from the mining companies. Sure this may be extreme the story told here but it is none the less possible, if not actually happening. Certainly in the poorer countries there are whole towns/villages being decimated.
The whole social fabric of a small town that is at the lower end of the socio-economic scale can suffer by false promises of mining companies.
This book is fiction but it m...more
The whole social fabric of a small town that is at the lower end of the socio-economic scale can suffer by false promises of mining companies.
This book is fiction but it m...more
This book takes place in the mountains of West Virginia. The events which occur are similar to happenings which I've read have actually occurred in nearby states. I was ready to categorize this book as a future classic. The profuse profanity within may or may not inhibit that. It is a must reading for the youth of America to make them aware of what is presently occurring within our country in regard to our quest for its natural resources. Corporate America sometimes stops at nothing & limits...more
I really enjoyed this book. The character development and the emotions tied to each one were spectacular. Natural disasters, death, friendship, love, all something part of the story. The plot itself was not one familiar to a large population of folks as it describes life in the hills of West Virigina, however, it was no less entertaining. A extremely quick read I believe. Thought the story was well put together. Throughout the entire story there was some air of doubt about everything. What would...more
Yes this book is about a drug dealing guy who steals from the nursing home where he works. It's about a town in West Virginia where the coal industry is destroying everything.
But it's also about everybody having a story that matters. Everybody has dreams and everybody has choices to make.
The author took these universal themes, and crafted this unique story with these crazy characters whom you would seemingly have nothing in common with but somehow can totally understand.
Whether or not any of...more
But it's also about everybody having a story that matters. Everybody has dreams and everybody has choices to make.
The author took these universal themes, and crafted this unique story with these crazy characters whom you would seemingly have nothing in common with but somehow can totally understand.
Whether or not any of...more
I won’t re-summarise the story of The Evening Hour as the synopsis says it all. This is an often bleak, sometimes depressing story with some shocking insights into the dramatics and politics of a small town, ravaged by poverty, drugs and the mining industry.
I found it easy to sympathise, in some ways, with Cole and the way he cared for the elderly and isolated residents of the nursing home where he works and the areas surrounding the town, despite the fact that he was buying their prescription...more
I found it easy to sympathise, in some ways, with Cole and the way he cared for the elderly and isolated residents of the nursing home where he works and the areas surrounding the town, despite the fact that he was buying their prescription...more
This novel will take you on a very personal journey where you will admire a character in one sentence and despise that same character by the end of that same paragraph. A raw and honest voice guides the trip and keeps things moving along. I found myself uncomfortably examining the "what if" situations of the life's of my own and my loved ones in so many instances. Sickles has made a great addition not only to rough South, or grit lit, or whatever you want to tag this novel, but also just a dang...more
Very sad book about the destruction caused by surface mining, as well as the poverty, drugs, and lack of education, in West Virginia. I haven't read a book in a long time in which there just wasn't a protagonist you could connect with. Although I understand that every character reflected a tragic aspect of the situation (i.e., poverty, lack of education, etc.) in too many parts of West Virginia, it was still a rough book to get through because I just couldn't connect with any aspect of it. That...more
A disappointing read. Not only were there typos in the copy I read, but the lack of character development was irritating. The author chose a lot of extremely rich themes to write about, but none were fully fleshed out. I wanted to see some kind of resolution--not necessarily happy, because that clearly wasn't happening--just something to make the story end on a note that wasn't so flat.
Aug 17, 2012
Roberta
added it
Not a pretty view of West Virginia coal mining towns. The very likeable protagonists steals prescription drugs from his nursing home patients to resell to the desperate residents of his small town, which is washed away in a Buffalo Creek-like disaster. Salvation comes from leaving town. Still, and engaging and slightly hopeful read in spite of the unhappy setting.
I read this book for book group. Maybe I just wasn't in the mood for such a depressing story, but I was hard pressed to give this 2 stars. It was an easy read and I was curious about what would happen to the main character, but overall I thought it was poorly written. I just wasn't in the mood to read about a lot of druggies, small town poverty,and their pathetic lives while Spring has sprung in NH and the weather here is beautiful!
I guess I have a penchant for Appalachian tales and this was one I almost didn't read. Especially with the holidays here, I thought the material would be too hard to read. But, I'm so glad I did. Cole was a complex character. He had a good heart and was so kind to the elderly he worked with at his job as a nursing home aide. But, he also supplemented his income and that of others by selling their prescription drugs.
His mother left when he was about 4 and he was raised by his snake handling prea...more
His mother left when he was about 4 and he was raised by his snake handling prea...more
This is a very dark read in a very real world sense, not to be confused with fantasy dark. I honestly would not have read this book if it were not assigned. I feel a bit tinged by reading it, but I believe that may be the intent on some level, a sort of wake-up call for all of us living under the sludge dam, be it metaphorically or literally.
Simple story about the folks in the mountains of West Virginia and the way the destruction of their home by the coal and gas companies becomes part of eveyday life. Interesting main character, you like him, he's a good guy, but he's a thief and a drug dealer who steals from the elderly. Note-I believe the author is from UNC.
Compelling novel set in West Virginia. A story of transformation, redemption of sorts, and making peace; rich with elements of Appalachian culture/beliefs. I really felt I was back in Appalachia...This novel felt real and true. Excellent story that winds religion, environmentalism, drug addiction, poverty, despair, and transformation together.
I loved this book...truly. I was rooting for the anti hero throughout. I hope Mr. Sickels writes many many more wonderful, thoughtful and lyrical books. If you loved Jane Hamilton's Map of the World and Book of Ruth look no further for your next great read.
I'm already excited about the next book that Sickels writes. I'm only hoping that Cole Freeman makes a return. What an incredibly fascinating protagonist and what a compelling story--more, please.
I really enjoyed this book. It was about a young man that grew up in a West Virginia coal mining town. How it destroyed the town and what he did to make a living. I recommend it.
This man has got WV dialect pegged. That he lives in my fair city of Portland is just a bonus. I loved this book. Makes me homesick and yet glad I am gone.
view 1 comment
A depressingly dark view of life in present-day Appalachia from an author that studied in Pennsylvania and North Carolina, and lives in Oregon.
Hard book to put down...sad story about the working poor in the mountains of West Virginia and the fight against strip mining in their communities.
A damned good book that suffers a little bit from trying to encompass too much. I would read another book by this author in a heartbeat, though.
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
Carter Sickels lives in Portland, Oregon. THE EVENING HOUR is his first novel.
More about Carter Sickels...
Share This Book
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »
