Lady Chevy: A Novel

4.5*
Tremendous debut by John Woods. Part American Rust (Philip Meyer), part Pop.1280(Jim Thompson) this is fabulous page turner. The author takes on lots of contentious issues and delivers big style. Central to the book is fracking and the devastion it causes to communities and to the environment. Dick Cheney gets a massive bootfuck. Clever writing, it's a spellbinding story and I can't recommend this highly enough.

Amy Wirkner lives in a small Ohio town. She is obese and is routinely bullied by her peers, thus her nickname, Chevy because of her size. She is obese and bullied and shamed about it. Amy's parents were cajoled into selling mineral rights to a slick salesman, which has led to fracking, polluted water, and a little brother with serious developmental problems. Amy is smart though, determined to go to college, and become a vet. Her best friend convinces her to drive him to plant a bomb at one of the fracking sites. A security guard wings the friend, and is trying to catch them, when Amy unloads her shotgun twice to disable the car, but does much more. The cops investigate, and Amy takes decisive action to defend her freedom. There is also show more a second, strange storyline about a local cop who likes to play judge, jury and executioner. I was glad to get out of this one alive. Many others did not. Too much hatred and violence for me, without any sort of moral compass. show less