Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.
Loading... At the Edge of the Orchard (original 2016; edition 2016)by Tracy Chevalier (Author)
Work InformationAt the Edge of the Orchard by Tracy Chevalier (2016)
Top Five Books of 2017 (281) Books Read in 2016 (904) Books Read in 2018 (606) » 2 more Family Drama (43) Loading...
Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. This novel was at its best in the first half, where the author painted the lives of a pioneering family. The insights into each of the flawed characters made them seem very real, and if I couldn't entirely sympathize with them all, I could at least understand their motivations and what made them tick. Even the horrible Sadie had sorrows and frustrations that I could connect with. Had the author chosen to end the story with the family in Ohio, this would have been a very good novella. But the second half, which follows one son's journey to manhood, was at first so dull that I had to consciously power through it for a while. Too many new characters were introduced, with so superficial an insight that I'm not sure what purpose they served, other than to prop up the story's events. Robert's eventual character arc was interesting enough in the end to have made the time spent on this story not completely wasted, but honestly, I'd have been more satisfied had I DNF'd at the half-way point. Audiobook version, borrowed from my public library via Overdrive. The performance by a cast of readers was very good, but Cassandra Morris as the voice of Sadie deserves special mention - she made that character come alive. full review can be found here: https://nordie.wordpress.com/2016/04/07/book-review-mary-green-by-melanie-kerr/ At the Edge of the Orchard seemed like a good follow up to Frazier and again, I was not disappointed by Tracy Chevalier's tale of America through the lens of its trees, starting in an apple orchard in Ohio where two mismatched people attempt to raise a family amidst their battles over apples. Their son Robert escapes after a brutal event and ends up in California, wandering amongst the redwood and sequoia groves. Eventually, Robert's past catches up with him, and he is forced to face his decisions and responsibilities. Chevalier included the enigmatic apple guru, Johnny Appleseed, as an early character, paddling his canoe filled with seedlings and saplings for sale and handing out seeds for free. A well-told tale of life in early 19th century America. no reviews | add a review
Belongs to Publisher SeriesGallimard, Folio (6464) Distinctions
Fiction.
Literature.
Historical Fiction.
HTML:??With impeccable research and flawless prose, Chevalier perfectly conjures the grandeur of the pristine Wild West . . . and the everyday adventurers??male and female??who were bold enough or foolish enough to be drawn to the unknown. She crafts for us an excellent experience.? ??USA Today From internationally bestselling author Tracy Chevalier, author of A Single Thread, comes a riveting drama of a pioneer family on the American frontier 1838: James and Sadie Goodenough have settled where their wagon got stuck ?? in the muddy, stagnant swamps of northwest Ohio. They and their five children work relentlessly to tame their patch of land, buying saplings from a local tree man known as John Appleseed so they can cultivate the fifty apple trees required to stake their claim on the property. But the orchard they plant sows the seeds of a long battle. James loves the apples, reminders of an easier life back in Connecticut; while Sadie prefers the applejack they make, an alcoholic refuge from brutal frontier life. 1853: Their youngest child Robert is wandering through Gold Rush California. Restless and haunted by the broken family he left behind, he has made his way alone across the country. In the redwood and giant sequoia groves he finds some solace, collecting seeds for a naturalist who sells plants from the new world to the gardeners of England. But you can run only so far, even in America, and when Robert??s past makes an unexpected appearance he must decide whether to strike out again or stake his own claim to a home at last. Chevalier tells a fierce, beautifully crafted story in At the Edge of the Orchard, her most graceful and rich No library descriptions found. |
Current DiscussionsNonePopular covers
Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.54Literature English (North America) American fiction 20th Century 1945-1999LC ClassificationRatingAverage:
Is this you?Become a LibraryThing Author. |
4 stars ( )