fiction
Damon Fields was born to an 18yo unwed mother who lived
alone in a trailer park in rural Virginia.
As a child, he was given the nickname Demon Copperhead (due to the
wordplay on his first name and the color of his hair). This novel is his childhood
survival story. He faced neglect, poverty, grief, fostering, and drug addiction.
Demon’s life was described so clearly and completely by
Barbara Kingsolver that I could vividly picture it all. He was a fantastic character who had a whole
lot of rotten luck. He did have a few
key good people in his life. But some sections were tough to read. Despite his
unfortunate situations, he was compassionate and patient with people who had
disadvantages of their own. It was depressing to see how the Department of
Social Services could so easily fail to serve kids in need and heartbreaking to
watch the light fade out of Demon’s eyes when he wasn’t getting the necessary
amount of care or food.
The difficulties Demon and his friends faced were numerous
and serious: injury, theft, drug abuse, malpractice, physical abuse, rape, and
teenage pregnancy. There were several
times where I just wanted to shout out loud, “Who is looking out for these
people?” For some, their lives ended tragically. But, somehow, Demon managed to
survive thanks to his natural abilities, common sense, and a few relationships
that made a difference.
This book made me feel a lot. I’d find myself thinking about
Demon when I wasn’t reading the book.
The narrator, Charlie Thurston, did a terrific job. Most of the novel was told from Demon’s observations and descriptions but, occasionally, there was dialogue with other characters and Thurston did have a vocal repertoire. The accent he used for Demon throughout the entire novel was wholeheartedly believable and his other voices were distinct and appropriate too. I give him an A.
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