The Secret Wisdom of the Earth

A book club friend of mine raved about this book to me. I admit I was skeptical about the story even when she read aloud a beautiful passage. Appalachian tales are not generally in my wheelhouse. I looked at the jacket copy. "An act of violence" is one phrase that makes me run in the other direction, about as fast as possible. I checked out the cover art. It looked a little new agey or maybe washed out, dull with the watercolors. It just didn't call to me. I wasn't sold. So I had decided that I was probably not going to read this one when it showed up on my doorstep and demanded to be read. The universe obviously didn't agree with my decision. And I have to say I am so glad to have been over-ruled!

Fourteen year old Kevin and his mother show more move to Medgar, Kentucky for the summer to try and heal from the terrible tragedy of his younger brother's death. His father blames Kevin, his mother has retreated into herself, but his grandfather, into whose home they land, while also grieving, can see the bigger picture and can comfort this grandson who has to shoulder so much. As Kevin makes a local friend in Buzzy Fink and spends time with his wise and thoughtful grandfather, he slowly starts to become a regular teenager again. But if Medgar is healing Kevin, it is also a place where everything is changing. Long a mining community, now in the 80s, strip mining has come to Medgar, razing the tops of mountains, polluting the water, and raising tensions in the town between those who argue for the environment and protection of the mountain hollows and those who want the influx of jobs and money that this type of mining brings. The town can be short-sighted, bigoted, and narrow-minded but the situation, the need to create jobs to sustain the townsfolk, is a complicated one. When a local man, loved by some and reviled by others because of his homosexuality, who was very vocal about the underhandedness of the strip mining operation is murdered, tensions spill over and both good and evil and the difficult areas in between are exposed to Kevin, affecting him in ways he never could have predicted.

This novel was completely engrossing and hard to put down. Scotton beautifully draws small town Appalachia in the 80s and the competing concerns of living in such a place. He manages to raise moral, political, and social issues without preaching, wrapping a heart warming grandfather and grandson relationship story around such troubling things as homophobia and mining rights; the concepts of guilt, blame, and forgiveness; the hopefulness of healing, both of an individual and a community; and the value of the long, slow process of justice. Kevin is a sympathetic character and his friendship with Buzzy is wonderful. Pops, his grandfather, is magical, a touchstone for his hurting grandson. The tension and fight in the novel is personal, which makes it all that much more dangerous to everyone involved. The writing is richly descriptive, drawing the reader into the place both physically and in terms of its character and that of the people who inhabit it. The story is told retrospectively by an adult Kevin looking back at that formative summer but adult Kevin still captures the effect that events had on teenaged Kevin in such a way that the reader forgets that it isn't being narrated in the present. That Scotton offers no easy answers for the issues he raises and manages to create sympathy for several characters the reader wants to despise is a real testament to his talent. A beautiful coming of age tale, this is one not to be missed. show less

I easily got caught up in this story, especially the last part when the main character, 14 year old Kevin, has to pull of an amazing feat of survival and grit to save the lives of him, his grandfather, and his best friend. It starts out sedately enough - Kevin and his mother are staying with his grandfather - "Pops" - for the summer in an attempt to help his mother recover after the death of Kevin's younger brother. At first the reader doesn't know how Kevin's brother died and waiting for that secret to be revealed does build some nice tension early in the story. Even though Kevin is burdened by this secret he is also soon enjoying the more rural environment of his Grandfather's small community, and soon makes a best friend named Buzzy show more Fink. He and Buzzy have several adventures together, adventures where Kevin learns about the secrets of woods and mudholes and caves. Kevin also learns much from Pops about the character and relationships between the residents of the close knit community, as Kevin starts helping Pops with his work at a veterinarian. We soon learn that a local mining outfit is tearing up the area by "mountain top mining" - basically blasting off the tops of mountains to get the very last bit of coal out of them. Pops is strongly against this environmental travesty, a stance that sets him against some of the powerful men in the community. Pop's enemies, local bullies, and teenagers up to mischief create several tense moments in the book - but it all comes to a dramatic head when Pops, Kevin and Buzzy set off on a trek through the mountains near the end of the summer. They think they can escape into nature and leave their troubles behind for a while - but trouble finds them in a most dramatic and exciting series of events.
Kevin's feats near the end seemed of near mythical proportions, but it make for a very satisfying ending. For a good man versus nature and man versus man adventure it was quite thrilling. I also got emotionally drawn into the different residents of the town and their conflicts. I'd definitely recommend this read. show less

In his stunning debut novel, Christopher Scotton has given us a powerful story of life, death, greed, family relations, friendship and growing up.  Set in rural Appalachian Kentucky, we meet people who are trying to honor their roots, raise and feed their families, preserve a way of life, and teach the next generation the value of the land and its resources.
I was blown away by this one.  The camping, hiking, hunting, tramping scenes are not subjects I'm normally fond of, but Scotton's descriptions and his ability to spin not only believable but spectacular dialogue made this one a true page turner for me.
There are heart-wrenching and poignant scenes of incredible sadness.  There are heart-warming and rewarding scenes of astonishing show more acts of friendship.  There are scenes of such devotion, love and bravery that I was often on the verge of tears.

After his younger brother dies in a horrifying accident, fourteen year old Kevin and his mother come to Medgar Kentucky to spend the summer with his grandfather, hoping to help each of them mend.  Here they encounter a town caught in a battle over strip-mining, leveling the surrounding mountains, and polluting the waterways.  The opposition is led by a recently outed homosexual in this small-town, Bible-belted setting.  Here Kevin meets Buzzy Fink, outdoorsman extraordinaire. Buzzy witnesses a horrific crime and struggles with what to do with the knowledge.  On a harrowing camping trip with Grandpa, both boys learn their true strength, both moral and physical.

An adult Kevin narrates the story, giving us the benefit of his hindsight, but never lets us loose the pit-of-the-stomach moments the teenagers experience.

Definitely one of the best books of the year for me.  I was so enamored, I also borrowed the audio from  the public library.  The narrator, Robert Petkoff, gives us the pitch perfect accents of the areas, varies the voices so the listener is never in doubt about who is speaking, and cements this debut novel in the top ranks of literary fiction for 2015. show less

“I guess I learned that even though most people are good, they can be talked into doing bad things by one or two jerks...And I guess, people sometimes need someone who can stand up and remind them that they are good people and they know what's right.”

4.5 stars

The prose in this book created a song in my heart like the tunes that have been sung throughout the Appalachian Mountains for the last few centuries. Author Christopher Scotton has created a beautifully-written novel which I couldn't help but think of as a modern-day "To Kill a Mockingbird". He has combined a coming-of-age tale with stories of tragedy, the power of love over hate, the complexities of the coal mining economy, and a deep reverence for the beauty of nature and a show more sense of place.

The characters in this book are well-developed, and I imagine readers will have their favorites, as I did. The plot may get a wee bit fantastical toward the end, but first-time novelist Scotton is forgiven because the rest of the novel is so strong (note for the author: next time one or two catastrophes are enough -- they don't need to pile on each other).

Highly recommended. show less

I thought The Secret Wisdom of the Earth was a marvelous book and awarded it my highest rating, four stars!

The action is set in rural Kentucky where inhabitants are trying to find a balance between environmental conservancy and the profitable business of strip mining. Hostilities between entrenched hill people and broader minded townies erupt in the murder of a local activist, who also happens to be gay. The repercussions of the murder alter lives in ways well beyond the scope of environmentalist versus industrialist.

What really sets this novel apart though is Scotton’s character development of his protagonists. He brings Medgar, Kentucky and its residents to life with beautifully constructed passages of lyrical and descriptive prose. show more We root for Kevin as he copes with misplaced guilt following the horrific accidental death of his toddler brother. Our heart breaks for Annie, catatonic with grief at the loss of her son. And we nod our heads in agreement with Pops, Kevin’s grandfather, as he spouts mild-mannered wisdom for his emotionally broken family. I literally could not put the story down during the harrowing escape from the mountains after a camping trip gone bad.

I disagree with reviews saying it is a slow read. I hated having to put it down.

Scotton hit a home run with his debut novel! show less

The Secret Wisdom of the Earth by Christopher Scotton is a very highly recommended multilayered coming-of-age tale that incorporates many other themes.

It is 1985 and 14 year old Kevin Gillooly has moved with his mother to her hometown of Medgar, Kentucky to stay with her father after the death of her other son, Kevin’s three-year-old brother. Kevin's mother is still in mourning and in a deep depression. Kevin's father cruelly blames Kevin for the accidental death.

"It had been two months since my brother, Joshua, was killed, and the invulnerability I had felt as a teenager was only a curl of memory. Mom had folded into herself on the way back from the hospital and had barely spoken since. My father emerged from silent disbelief and was show more diligently weaving his anger into a smothering blanket for everyone he touched, especially me. My life then was an inventory of eggshells and expectations unmet.
Pops, my maternal grandfather, suggested Mom and I spend the summer with him in the hope that memories of her own invulnerable childhood would help her heal. It was one of the few decisions on which my father and grandfather had ever agreed."

Pops, Kevin’s grandfather, is a veterinarian, concentrating on large animals now. Kevin is introduced to good books and hired as an assistant by his astute, perceptive grandfather. Kevin also meets Buzzy Fink, a friend who helps Kevin explore the woods and mountains and tells him some of the local legends and introduces him to folk medicine.

If The Secret Wisdom of the Earth simply covered Kevin's healing it would still be an insightful coming-of-age story, but Kevin's recovery is a small part of the story. Much like life, the novel is much more complex than that. Medgar, Kentucky is also a long time coal mining area. Currently the rich coal veins in the mines are played out, but Bubba Boyd's Monongahela Mining Company now retrieves coal by mountaintop removal, a practice that requires blowing up the mountain and leaving a destroyed and poisoned landscape behind. Boyd is trying to buy up land from the locals. Paul Pierce, a local hairdresser and environmental activist, is aggressively trying to stop Boyd when Boyd uses Pierce's homosexuality to attack him personally. The fight becomes personal, lethal, and much more complicated. Adding to these storylines are the descriptions of the local small town and hillbilly culture.

The Secret Wisdom of the Earth is an exceptional debut novel. The coming-of-age story is seamlessly blended into the narrative that also shows how people can be manipulated and public opinion swayed when they don't have the meddle to stick to their convictions. Scotton weaves a story that encompasses loss, love, tradition, greed, empathy, and redemption, while showing the importance of nature and the path of a confused boy turning toward becoming a wise man.

The writing is excellent, descriptive and powerful. The writing will capture your attention and the story will hold it until the narrative reaches a point that you will be utterly compelled to keep reading in order to find out what happens next. Scotton manages a few surprises along the way, but he also concludes the novel nicely, setting the characters in the present, looking back at that summer of monumental changes.

Disclosure: My Kindle edition was courtesy of Grand Central Publishing for review purposes. show less

I cannot praise THE SECRET WISDOM OF THE EARTH enough. What a wonderful novel!

After a horrific accident,14-year-old Kevin and his mother go to Kentucky to spend the summer with her father, Kevin’s grandfather "Pops.” The story develops with the friendship between Kevin and a boy his age, Buzzy, from a poor but proud hillbilly family in the area. But this is not just a coming-of-age story. It’s also about the wisdom and intelligence of Pops, small-town life, beautiful mountains and lakes being destroyed by “mountaintop removal,” hate crime, and rednecks and all coming to can’t-put-it-down pages describing a hiking trip in the mountains and Buzzy’s and Kevin’s struggle to save Pops.

Do yourself a favor: read this book. Then show more you will be happy to know that the author, Christopher Scotton, is writing another. show less