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Demon Copperhead

Barbara Kingsolver

Start date: September 1, 2023

Finish date: November 30, 2023

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Oct 09, 2023 Rosemary rated it really liked it · review of another edition

A very loose retelling of David Copperfield, set in the impoverished rural area of Appalachia in the western part of Virginia. "Demon", real name Damon and nicknamed Copperhead because of his red hair, is the son of a single mother who is trying to get clean of drugs and alcohol. Soon he is in the foster care system and grows up in a society where almost everyone of his age seems to take drugs - and many older people too, because this is the time of mass OxyContin prescription in the USA.

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Nov 13, 2023 Jen Lynn rated it liked it

Shelves: 2023-reviewed

I’m varying between 3 and 4 stars. I enjoyed it. It was certainly interesting, raw, and at times hard to read (in a good way). But it was also long and a bit drawn out. Overall was good, but not the happiest book out there.

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Dec 19, 2024 Dot rated it really liked it

What a story from Barbara Kingsolver! Amazing, but also sad, overwhelming and disappointing in the way our "system" sometimes works. This is the early life of Demon Copperhead, told by Demon, and it is, at times, a very difficult and hardscrabble life. Demon has a survivor's instinct and perseverance that is awesome but also has many frailties. This is a long novel, a hard story and a hard life and at times I was ready to be finished, but am also very glad to have read it. ...more

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