Demon Copperhead

Kingsolver so adeptly writes in the voice of a young man, taking us on his truly epic journey. His life is hard, dark and disturbing at just about every turn. But we the readers see his good heart, his never ending search for love and belonging and ultimately, his cathartic redemption. Our book club thoroughly enjoyed this read- a new and timely take on David Copperfield. I highly recommend this read if you enjoy getting to know all the characters that make up a protagonist's life and you want to take the time to settle in and follow Demon's arc. Kingsolver's writing is magical. She is a gifted wordsmith and, in my opinion, one of our greatest living novelists.

This was an excellent read, but gosh it was so heartbreaking and depressing at times!

It was so tough to read at times that I honestly felt like walking away from it.

I read David Copperfield prior to this and it's sad to see that some things really haven't changed between then and now.

Saying that, I enjoyed the parallels between this and David Copperfield, not just in terms of characters but the odd quote here and there too.

It was dark, sad, heartbreaking and tough so whilst I do recommend it, I would urge caution because something like that might not be for everyone.

Thank you to PH and Barbara Kingsolver for the chance to read this book.

why did they insist on giving everyone a nickname in this town....???

anyways, loved demon. i just imagined him being the cutest little boy ever and i felt so connected to him from the start. i think this could've been a 5 stars if it was structured differently because it had its moments where really nothing was being added to the story and it got a little boring/repetitive. still though i did really enjoy it.

Given all the hype, I expected a 5-star read, but I got a great 4-star read. Having recently read David Copperfield in preparation, this book was an interesting reading experience in that I knew what was going to happen, but not how. The story was moving, but I think the messaging would have been more impactful if it were more subtle.

This book was a hard, sad read. It's because of that that I wasn't sure if I wanted to rate it a 4 or 5. I wasn't sure if I would recommend this to everyone given just how sad it is. That said, upon reflection, it deserves the 5 stars. This book kept me in its clutches the whole time, which is so surprising to me given its length.

The real excellence, though, is in the craft of the story. As an addict, much of this was familiar to me. The slow creep. The excuses. The “how did we even get here?!” Thought process as you move further towards rock bottom. This book brings the reader along in that journey—engaging them in the hero's journey and making something that may not be as familiar to everyone very accessible. Scarily so.

So many of my childhood friends are dead due to overdose, heroin and fentanyl. This book was relatable, touching and made something that disgusts so many (drug addiction) much more approachable.

I had a hard time getting in this book, but once I passed the 30% mark, I couldn’t stop anymore. It reminded me a lot about the movies made by the Dardenne brothers about social discrimination but also a lot about Oliver Twist (once I read the acknowledgment the inspiration was clearly stated).

While this book could have been a really bleak transcription of the hurdles of an orphan having to live in the « redneck » states, it provides with glimpses of hope throughout the whole story and you get really invested in Damon’s life.

It taught me a lot also about the so-called redneck lives, how they came to be and the injustices they had to face for decades (as well as opioids trials).

This books succeeds at depicting a really hard upbringing while not making it a tearjerker, through a really resilient main character. Truly a great read!

My favorite book of 2022 so far. I would even say it's one of the better books that I've ever read.

This book is jam packed with fully fleshed characters that leave a lasting image. There are quite a bit of issues it addresses and a lot of deep themes.

While I could go on about all the great things of this book I will just say one thing that I personally liked/found especially interesting. The way that everything Demon loved about Dori embodied what Demon's mom was like on their best day together seemed to me like a cool underlying detail.

Loved this book. So much hit so close to home (both figuratively and geographically) and it felt authentic in a way that I didn’t quite expect. I don’t know why, but I had not categorized Kingsolver as an “Appalachian” writer previously, despite knowing of her bonafides in terms of being from Kentucky, but this book is clearly written with a love and intimate knowledge for the region and its people. There’s more going on here, too. The social justice angle. The David Copperfield retelling. The language itself. All of it just got me thinking in all of the best ways, even if those ways are also painful.

For anyone who also loved this book who finds themselves interested in learning more about Appalachia or reading more Appalachian literature, Kingsolver put together a really nice reading list for The New York Times.

I hope someone makes J.D. Vance read this book, which makes way more sense than his vile HILLBILLY ELEGY. And you don't have to have read DAVID COPPERFIELD to appreciate this story; you only have to be somewhat aware of what's going on in this world. Poverty and exploitation; drug pushers; lousy foster care systems; underfunded education systems; and on and on.

I confess that the first half of the book was a bit of a slog for me, but about mid-way through, Demon's understanding of what's happening to him grows and he becomes far more interesting. The second half of the book for me was a rocket ship.

This was a heartbreak rollercoaster. It's as draining a read as I've ever dared to complete but I'm glad I did. The language is rich and immersive and it's packed with references and turns of phrase that provide an authentic sense of person and place. You really believe these characters exist somewhere, which makes every tragedy more painful to read. It's filled with these little daggers that you're almost certain weren't invented but pulled from someone's lived experience... but despite all that darkness, It's also very funny...? Demon is smart, charismatic and certifiably hilarious and his perspective is what makes it possible to actually finish this novel. There were so
many moments that had me laughing out loud throughout and while I wouldn't call the ending happy, it's lined with a kind of hopefulness that I wasn't sure would still be there by the conclusion. This is a moving and brutal character study that you should emotionally prepare yourself for before picking up.

The brief for this one is always stated as “David Copperfield in opioid Appalachia,” and, uh, it is. Past a certain point I couldn't put it down, the narrative voice is appealing too which goes a long way toward making an otherwise bleak family saga readable. It's hard to describe the actual events in Demon Copperhead without spoiling the narrative, simply because so much of the novel's actual engaging qualities come from the serial qualities retained from the source material. This book could easily be used in an AP English class to teach narrative structure and the impact of style and voice on tone and theme.

I've started this book and stopped three times before I finally was able to read it from beginning to end. Bleak. That's the only word for this novel. Unremittingly bleak. A boy is born to a poor, single mother living in a trailer in one of the most poverty-stricken areas of Appalachia. His mother takes up with a cruel man and dies a sad death...

And that's just the beginning of bleak events that happen to our main character, Demon. I could hardly bear to keep turning the pages and face the addictions and miseries and early deaths that Demon and the other characters in this story face.

The charm of it, I think, is the hope that keeps Demon going, hope that arises from the occasional folks in his life that surprise him with their goodness and their generosity.

There are some killer lines in this book. Here are few of them:

“Certain pitiful souls around here see whiteness as their last asset that hasn't been totaled or repossessed.”

He said, “You know, sometimes you hear about these miracles, where a car gets completely mangled in a wreck. But then the driver walks out of it alive? I'm saying you are that driver.”

“The wonder is that you could start life with nothing, end with nothing, and lose so much in between.”

‘I said probably they were just scared he was going to put ideas in our heads. She smiled. “Imagine that. A teacher, putting ideas in kids' heads.”'

Oh, my goodness, it's good.I haven't read [b:David Copperfield 58696 David Copperfield Charles Dickens https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1461452762l/58696.SY75.jpg 4711940], but I have some knowledge about it, and I think Barbara managed to transfer the spirit of the story to modern South. More than once I was asking “how does she know?” She can't possibly have lived through the things she talks about in this book, Demon's voice felt authentic and real, and it was heartbreaking, but in a good way. And the ending was good. It started to drag there a bit, but not for too long, like the damned [b:The Goldfinch 17333223 The Goldfinch Donna Tartt https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1378710146l/17333223.SY75.jpg 24065147].

I saw that this was a retelling of David Copperfield, which I've never read before, but I was like, OK. After finishing this book, I just now read the wiki summary of David Copperfield, and I'm like, ah, I see what you did here, Barbara.

anywayyyyy I loved the voice here, it's so distinct and compelling. The plot...like...I get it, as a Dickensian pastiche, but by the last few travails it was like....getting a little too long/melodramatic for my tastes T B H? I definitely get it as an Issue Novel about Appalachian poverty/opioid crisis/etc in the same way Dickens was highlighting social issues in Victorian England. Like it is not subtle, and that is by design, but also...uh.....well, it's not my fav B-Kings book, I'll say that. I'm still a fan tho!

Demon Copperhead is a modern retelling of David Copperfield, set in the Appalachian region of West Virginia. We follow Demon from birth to young adult as he navigates the harsh reality of growing up as an orphan in rural Lee County ravaged by Oxy and other drugs. It's an emotional journey filled with turns of luck and misfortune for Demon and his friends. 

I was captivated by the incredible characters and depth. Kingsolver avoids relying on stereotypes or tropes. Instead, she dives into the characters' backgrounds, motivations, and emotions, showing us why each character acts that way. There's a strong critique of class, the artificial divides in society, and the foster care system. We see this exemplified throughout the book and its impact becomes especially poignant when set against the backdrop of the opioid crisis.

As it happens with longer and slow paced books, the plot drags in the middle. There were parts where I powered through as I was hoping for more drama. I definitely enjoyed the ending, but some of the shifts in relationships were too subtle and easily missed. I knew Demon cared for Angus because she always believed in him, but the change to romantic parter left me wondering when did he start seeing her that way?  

Fantastic book, definitely give this a read! 

Don't do drugs!

This book was on the hot section at my library and there was a sticker attached that red “lucky express 7 day rental” and I thought, oh shit i better read this book before I'll never see it again. So I pushed Luminaries to the side (it was 800 pages) and started a journey through Lee County with Demon Copperhead.

My first thought was, wow this guy has a horrible and terrible life. My second thought was, wow fuck society. So put two and two and you will realize that this novel was a heavy hearted depiction of those who were unfortunate. Unfortunate was an understatement, I've read about terrible lives but there always seemed to be some magical way they got out of their circumstances like some sort of magical letter telling them they're a wizard. But this never happened for poor Demon. I kept reading waiting for the good to happen but it just got worse and worse, a brutal depiction of reality.

When it finally got better, by stroke of luck, it wasn't like all of Demon's problems were gone. He was still that kid with that leaky well with water oozing out of him. Everything was going well for this guy, but he was still broken and it showed when bad luck hit again. At first you feel bad for Demon because his life is absolutely horrible. But when things get bad the second time, sure you feel bad for him but not because his life is terrible, but because you can relate to his issues, his struggle, and his own hole draining all the good out of him. You never hate Demon because you can't. He's like your child that you wish to get better, to wake up one morning and decide to change his life around, but change like that isn't realistic and Demon Copperhead the novel is very realistic.

You have this Toblerone format of depicting Demon's life and the ups and downs of it all. And this just makes everything way worse. You yourself feel like Demon. During the bad you can't wait for him to get better, and at the peak of his life you can't help but wonder how its all going to fall down. And it doesn't just randomly get bad, it is ultimately his own choices that causes his own misfortune in the later half of his story. And this hurts more than misfortune you can't control, it hurts because it's pain that he has no one to blame for. But when it finally goes up again it feels so satisfying, like he finally pulled his shit together.

This novel has never made me question how lucky I am to live the life I have.

Likes:
Demon. He is such a well written character. A kid who obviously has his flaws. One that you won't believe is the age he is during the events of his life. One that is mature but just as immature. That one line where the housekeeper tells him his job is to be a kid was just so opening to what this guy had to go through. I really liked his interactions with other characters and the way the author wrote his narration felt real instead of cliche and over the top.

Setting. It helps that this place in a real place in the world. I always find a really good novel to have its setting almost be one of the characters. The novel goes deep into what Lee County is without going too over the top.

Writing. Holy cow Barbara Kingsolver cooks with her writing. I found that random lines hit so hard and there was no moment that I was bored of what was going on. It reads like a teenager's writing the good and the bad yet the descriptions feel so otherworldly and crazy. I really liked the pacing and how there are no life turning moments, instead series of events that change Demon's life which I found to be more realistic.

There are honestly so many more good things to say about this book. It was just so good in almost every way possible. Every character is so fleshed out and has so much to say without saying anything at all. Characters are diverse without having DEIB shoved into your face. The depiction of addiction hurts so badly that it feels like its coming out of the pages. I especially liked how brutal Dori was.... The foster care system was so brutal.

Dislikes:
I'm trying very hard to think of what I dislike but I can't come up without anything of interest. I think the one major thing I had an issue was the lack of an relationship Demon actually had with Dori. I get that its kind of the point but it would've been nice to see something else other than sex being described by Demon. But tbh I feel like there was purpose of having Dori written like that.

Another slight issue I had was how I felt that Demon and Emmy just kind of died off. Like there relationship was sooo interesting and it felt like there was nothing done with it later on.
I also have a slight issue with Demon being with Angus at the end because it felt like Angus was more of a sister/brother to Demon and not a potential love interest. It also doesn't really suit Angus's character imo and I was rooting for Demon and Emmy lol. But despite my bias I really felt that the whole Angus thing at the end was kind of offputting, almost incestuous.

In conclusion. Loved the book!

Demon has all the luck, all the bad luck. Whatever you can think of, he's got it worse. But deep down he remains a good guy. Loves his friends and those who look out for him. Perhaps it's all going to work out for him now. I hope so.
I didn't think it was as brilliant book as many did. It felt like a loooonngg read and wanted a lot of investment - which I just couldn't give. I'm glad there's a glimmer of hope though. We could all do with that after so much awfulness!

This book, about a poor boy in Appalachia was really one that made you think. It touched on so many subjects - poverty, being “redneck” - the label and the reality, living in the country, living in the city - after living in the country, drug addiction, how opioids start off “helpful”, until they are not, I could go on. But as a person who grew up in a bigger city, surrounded by “country-folk”, and raised in a small town, this book spoke to me. About why so many of my relatives (in the poor, country counties) are addicted - to something, many having a history of incarceration. Just a lot to think about. It's been a couple of hours since I finished it - and it is still on my mind. That is one of the earmarks to a good book, in my opinion. I read this book for bookclub, but I'm glad I did. Looking forward to some good discussion this week :)