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Summary: Understanding the Hard Life - Culture Shock
Review: I enjoyed this book because it helped me to understand what life might be like for someone else. It allowed me to put myself in another person's footprints. Can you imagine, on your own, how it might feel when your husband gets fired and doesn't tell you the reason why?Can you imagine how it might be to cope with confusing health problems without a doctor or nurse or even a family member to ask for help? Can you imagine starvation for a winter without welfare? I couldn't. Yet many people in our world still cope with these types of problems. We WANT to close our eyes to these realities, because they are uncomfortable. They do not entertain. But they do enlighten. Julie, the main character, does manage to cope with the difficulities that arise. Sometimes in surprising ways. How she copes with her husband's bad temper in a time when women were not liberated may give keys to coping with less than perfect family situations. And are there any perfect family situations? This book highlights the realities of a backward culture. Its lessons can be extended to any backward culture. But there is culture shock when faced with so many difficult and unhappy circumstances. Be prepared to look into your own reaction and what is causing it.
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Summary: Never ending story...
Review: Page after page of sadness and gloom to finally end up still in sadness and gloom... The story, little of it there is, is just a description of people going through life with such privation and hardship and just accepting it. I just could'nt bear it anymore and read the second half as fast as I could. I would not recommend such a dreary and monotonous book.
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Summary: Total Flop
Review: It was a genuine disappointment, from the subtitle "the story of a marriage" you expect to read about all that comes with the package of sacrifice, hardship and victory, but it has nothing much to offer than any youngster already knows. You keep hoping for the clinch to come, but it never does.
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Summary: Should be called "Survivor"
Review: This is not the story of a marriage. It is the story of Julie Harman, a young Appalachian woman, in a time before any kind of modern conveniences were available, who somehow survives despite gnawing hunger. As the story opens, Julie recounts how she "saw it all" and then goes on to describe her witness to an awful death of a sibling. Things stay ugly as her beloved Dad gets sick and dies and she takes over all the physical labor required for her mothers and sisters to survive. It is a cold story about a girl who feels as though the only reason anyone loves her is because she works hard. It is the story of constant struggle, poor decisions, and little joy. Although the Robert Morgan skillfully captures Julie's backward country talk and her stoicism, what is his point? Julie ends up learning that she must trust no one. Those who appear to love, turn out to betray, abuse, or ignore her. Her newly married handsome husband turns out to be a hotheaded loser. Even her renewed association with a church community does not really help her when she needs it the most- a starving flood victim in full term pregnancy. Any reader who concludes that she finds religion and it gives her peace has missed the mark. Most readers will have a sense of relief as the couple leaves Gap Creek. As the newlyweds proceed to the next destination, some readers may hope good things will happen for them, but most of us know otherwise. For me, this book is reason #3 why I will avoid Oprah's Book Club Selections in the future.
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Summary: A book that really puts you into the story
Review: Gap Creek was recommended to me at a book fair. I like books that can take you away (mentally), and you become a part of the story. Gap Creek does that, from the time you open the pages until you close them. It is great for country folk and modern folk alike. It was hard to get near the end of the story, because I hated to see the story end. Hopefully, Robert Morgan will publish a sequel to Gap Creek to see what happens after Julie & Hank move. Also, I really enjoyed the part where they both became Christians, it was so uplifting! Overall, it's a great book that you can't put down!
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Summary: Beauty's painful truth
Review: Robert Morgan creates an unlikely heroine. Written in diary form or stream-of-consciousness, the beauty of this novel is it's accurate depiction of life experienced by a poor, uneducated young girl in rural South. I find myself grieving for her and envying her at the same time. I envy her honesty, stamina, and sensible competence.
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Summary: Fall in love with Appalachia
Review: "It was a cold, clear night with the moon shining when we started out. We didn't even need the kerosene lantern in the open places, but I lit the wick anyway and carried it like a pail of light down the path..." "The lantern throwed its yellow glare over the chips on the ground. The chips appeared to be floating like some kind of foam. I thought there was one chip there for every single lick of the axe on the chopping block....The chips had stayed there like echoes from every chop." If you love the beautiful collaboration of words in these two paragraphs, imagine how much you will love a whole book like this!! I was hooked from page one. The author sets the tone in this tough, gritty story immediately, and that tone is pure America. Set in the under-educated Appalachia, nature's beauty is contrasted with the harshness of life. I'm not going to outline the story, or pull out characters for review. I'll just leave you with this thought: You know, believe it or not, sometimes Oprah is right!! Remember, if you liked those two paragraphs above, you will love this book as much as I did! Enjoy!
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Summary: Simple and heartfelt
Review: I got this book for Christmas and kept putting off reading it. I don't usually read this kind of book so I wasn't sure if I would like it or not. Surprisingly, I really enjoyed it from beginning to end, reading it in a day and a half. It starts a little slow but its very compelling and simple and the story flows from page one to the hopeful end. This is a difficult book at times due to the hardships she faced and its depressing to see how her life unfolded after marriage. I thought the author did a wonderful job with Julie's voice, it resonated very real to me. This is a woman from a very different time than those of us face now. Her hardwork is very real and descriptive in a way that makes you see how women had to be strong to survive such a turbulent life. Hank was often a very unlikeable character cruel to her at times yet eventually he ended up coming through for her. So these characters were real people to me who did change and grow with time and the pain they suffered gave them strength at the end. This marriage is a real marriage between two kids trying to face starvation, joblessness and being betrayed by others. If you like a simple but deep read, this is the one. Its a great story and a very honest one and shows you how how different life was a hundred years ago. A wonderful read.
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Summary: The Real Meaning of a Marriage
Review: The book started off slow with the life of Julie living at home, and then moving into the difficult life of this young woman. Through Julie's eyes we see that she has such an optimistic outlook to what is going to happen and hopes for the best for everyone and everything. We see Julie going through hardships such as verbal abuse, work overload, the loss of a child, brother, and father, and poverty. Though these harsh things happened to Julie, she ends up finding herself and converting back to her religion. Hank, her husband, is a man who has gone through many troubles and does not know how to control his anger at points in his life and ends up hurting Julie as well as himself. Julie has troubles with Hank's mother, and at the beginning of the book is not able to express her feelings for Ma, but eventually almost has a mental breakdown and yells at her. I enjoyed this book although it was difficult to get started with, yet it ended with such a powerful message to all.
Rating: 
Summary: A simple, easy read
Review: I had been eyeing this book for months before fnally getting my hands on it and reading. I have to say it was extremely simple reading; I zipped thru the pages quickly. I am not sure if we are supposed to believe that Julie, a young woman who was assuming a role in her family that was not congruent with the times, turned into the little homemaker wife with Hank. At times I didn't believe Julie would have thought the way she did in her situations, but at the same time I did feel for her. She was so young and faced many challenges. She annoyed me in her ways with Hank, making excuses for his behavior which is so typical of women that are abused. And then she proved her strength again with birthing alone. If you are looking for a light read, I recommend this. Just beware you may not believe a lot of what is told.
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