Rating: 
Summary: Slow start
Review: Stating out slow and ending with a "can't put down". Having to force myself to read the first few chapters only to become so engrossed in the book not wanting to put it down until finished.
Rating: 
Summary: An Expected Disappointment
Review: Against my better judgement, I decided to use up some of my time reading this book. I received the book as a gift from someone I respect and the author is local, so I thought I would give it a read. Unfortunately, the author's work lived up to what I think must be typical of Oprah's Book Club works. It is extremely maudlin and has clunky and obvious plot devices. The author has some technical skill, and that is what merits the 2-star rating. Amazingly, this version actually has an appendix with suggested areas for discussion. This is quite pretentious.
Don't waste your time with this one. Read some Faulkner or Sherwood Anderson and give this one to your grandmother.
Rating:
Summary: A sad story
Review: I just recently finished reading Gap Creek, and though it was an easy read, I never actually liked the story. I could easily tell that it was a man writing Julie's feeling and thoughts. I never found her to be real. Her senses, especially smell, were well described. When it came to descriptions of her feeling I feel they were superfical and minimal. Falling in love is something girls, especially 17 year old girls, spend all day thinking about, but Julie's feelings were never really shared with us. Her life was difficult and she is a hard worker - that is brought out over and over again - though we all knew that from the first page. I wish Morgan spend more time inside her head and her feelings and less time saying the same things over again. At the end of the story I still did not really like Julie or Hank or their marriage. I will not be reading any more of Morgan's books.
Rating: 
Summary: Gap Creek 'a story of hope'
Review: This is my very first Robert Morgan novel I have read so far, but after reading Gap Creek I plan on reading the remaining he has written. It started out slow, but as I read on I couldn't put it down. It's title should have been Gap Creek 'a story of hope'. Just when you would think that Julie (the main charecter) would give up, she would see the importance in overcoming obsticals. Julie has been through a lot in her 17-18 years of life, in only the begining of the novel she has had to become the "head of the household." I had thought the ending of the story was going to end up to be quite depressing, but instead it ended in hope and faith in starting over, just as they had done when she and Hank (her husband) were first married... No matter how or what I say about this book it would do no justice. This is a must read. I highly recommend you read it and make your own judgement on it. It's worth the time. Enjoy!
Rating: 
Summary: Grit and Glory
Review: If you ever felt that you truly had forgotten what it was like to pass from adolescent into the harsh reality of young adulthood, this is the book that will help you see things as they are for so many ordinary people. It is a tale of those who never had it easy, and likely never will, who walk the uphill of life taking each bump as it comes, clear eyed and without any expectation that life will be different than it is. It is a tale that reminds us that to be rural and poor does not mean that one lacks greatness of spirit and a vision for how life is to be lived.I liked the clean, straightforward quality of this lean but satisfying story of youth, love, loss and accomplishment. It felt real. The characters were well depicted and engaging. The author let them evolve and mature in ways that seemed credible given the time, place and opportunity afforded them. It made me wonder what the so-called American Dream really is all about. A quiet, insightful and engaging tale.
Rating:
Summary: This book bummed me out!
Review: If you're into books where nearly nothing good happens, this is the book for you. If you enjoyed Angela's Ashes, this is another book that will splendidly bring you down and depress you. Nothing happy or good happens to poor Julie, the main character in the book. The story is well-written in a simple, concise manner. While the writing is "neat," the story is simply a downer. If you're looking for something to pick you up, don't pick this one up.
Rating:
Summary: A Gripping Yet Simple Story
Review: This is a beautifully written story about a very young couple's life in Georgia and South Carolina Appalachia during the late 19th century. It tells a simple story spanning a period of only about 2 years. The detail of their exhaustive efforts to survive as well as their mundane tasks of everyday life did not leave me bored as I would have expected, but left me wanting more with every page. I felt an extreme sense of respect for my ancestors, as life as we know it now, is a piece of cake compared to life 100 years ago. I truly enjoyed learning all of the details of cooking a meal with no running water, no gas stove, no coffee maker or microwave. The details about the surrounding beauty of the mountains in their natural state astounded me. I learned so much I cannot even say .... whoever heard of creesie greens, sugartit and konkajohn? A wonderful novel that left me with much to think about and much to be thankful for... funny I finished reading it just before Thanksgiving.
Rating:
Summary: Strength beyond measure
Review: When first beginning to read this book I didnt think that I would get interested in it. I thought it would be one of those books that I dont get hooked in and stop reading. I was very wrong. By the end of the very first chapter I had a hard time putting the book down. Morgan grips the heart from the very beginning of the book. The book was so descriptive that I found myself actually able to see what he was talking about, and feel the same feelings as the characters. He invokes many different emotions throughout. Although there are many deaths in the book that just make you want to cry, there is a certain way in the book that always seems to end up making you feel like a stonger person. Julie is a very strong person, and shows this strength early on in the book by taking on so many tasks. She even feels as though she needs to take care of her father, and is his right hand man, usually doing more work than he did. It takes place in the Appalacians and depicts a married couple living off the land. A part of the book that really struck me was when Julie was discussing men with her sister at the beginning, when she said, "I'm burning up. Sweat was running down my face, back and around my temples, though it was below freezing in the woods. I hope no man ever sees us working like this, because he would never think of us as ladies." Its amazing how Morgan knows and describes exactly how a young lady can think and feel. Its usually hard for an author to capture the personality of someone so unlike themselves. I really enjoyed reading this book, although sometimes it made me cry. The overall feeling was that you can overcome any hardship, just as Julie and Hank found out. I would recommend this book to anyone, even if your not married it still seems to apply somehow. Its just a simple story with a very good point that makes you feel like you can do anything if you try hard enough.
Rating:
Summary: Simple, Sweet, Raw and So Very Real
Review: The marriage that Robert Morgan depicted in this novel was timeless. Times were certainly different 100 years ago, but people haven't changed much and some of the things that Julie and Hank went through in their time living on Gap Creek reminded me of the first couple of years of my own marriage. This is a must read for anyone wanting to escape the hustle and bustle of the 21st century for a week. You'll never forget Gap Creek.
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful Read
Review: As a person who didn't grow up in the United States and also as a woman I have to say I was both educated and amazed by this beautifull and insightful work of art. Thank you Mr. Morgan!
The characters in this book are so fully dementionl I felt I knew them personally! All of the events move tightly together and one situation leads to another without any gap or disruptions. Mr. Morgan must have a vast knowledge of the vegetations that grow in North and south Carolina to be able to name them and describe their characteristics in such a real and interesting way. The writer also has a deep knowledge of the way of life and the mentality of peole living in that period and place. Yet for me what was most capturing thing about this book was that the book is narrated by a young woman and is about mostly her life and views. The most ordinary tasks of a day to day life of a woman who lived a century ago in North and South Carolina is painstakingly discribed by Mr. Morgan that makes me believe that each one of us, even me, add so much to life, not only during our life but also after our death and that we have the ability to influence and inspire other people that may in so many ways be more advanced than us. Please immerse yourself in this novel and soak as much as you can.
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