Ask a Bookseller: David Copperfield reimagined in Appalachia

Alicia Michielli of Talking Leaves Books in Buffalo, New York recommends the novel “Demon Copperhead” by Barbara Kingsolver. The novel is a fairly direct retelling of “David Copperfield” by Charles Dickens, set in the 1980s in Appalachia — familiar territory for rural Kentucky-born Kingsolver. “In transposing a Victorian epic novel to the contemporary American South, Barbara Kingsolver enlists Dickens’ anger and compassion, and above all, his faith in the transformative powers of a good story,” the summary of the book reads on the HarperCollins website. “‘Demon Copperhead’ speaks for a new generation of lost boys, and all those born into beautiful, cursed places they can’t imagine leaving behind.”The story follows red-headed Damon, nicknamed Demon Copperhead. Raised at first by a loving, addict mother and abusive stepfather, he soon finds himself journeying through the foster system.If you haven't read the Dicken classic, don't let that stop you. Michielli says this tale of a boy's fortunes and misfortunes translate beautifully under Kingsolver's pen.“She's able to write sentences that are short and they're concise, but they break your heart,” raves Michielli. “There's never over-description. She just manages to get to the heart of the way things feel. Just like an arrow.”