Just finished reading another book by Ron Rash, this time "The Cove", a novel set in the "rugged Appalachians of North Carolina" near the end of World War I. On the back cover of my 239 page paperback edition, the cove is described as "a dark, forbidding place where spirits and fetches wander, and even the light fears to travel." The townsfolk believe that Laura, the young woman who lives in the cove with her brother Hank, is a witch. Hank is back from the war missing a hand. Laura finds a man playing a flute in the woods near her home. He has a note explaining that his name is Walter and he is mute. Their relationship forms the basis of the story which I won't give away by telling you more.
After the end of the novel, the book includes an interview with Ron Rash. One of the last questions is "What are you most proud of as a writer?" His response, "That I didn't give up, that I had enough faith in myself to keep writing when I was getting rejection slip after rejection slip. I didn't publish my first book with a national publisher until I was in my late forties. .... (Mr.Rash was born in 1953.) Nevertheless, I feel very fortunate that what attention has come to me has come after thirty years of writing. I was learning my craft in solitude."
I'm very glad that Mr. Rash didn't give up. He has become one of my favorite authors. I would call him a great writer but I admit that a recommendation from me is undoubtedly worth little. However, Janet Maislin of the NY Times recently included his short story collection, "Something Rich and Strange" among her favorite books published in 2014. She wrote that "Mr. Rash is one of the great American authors at work today, and this short story anthology confirms that stature. His prose rings clear and true ..."
Here's my first Rash post of September 16, 2011:
Rash Story - Serena
After reading a review by Janet Maislin in the NY Times on-line of October 5, 2008, I added Ron Rash's fourth novel, "Serena", to my "to read" list. There it sat for a few months shy of 3 years. Many titles have since been added by retractable ball point pens to this 8 1/2" x 11" standard sheet of printer paper. Quite a few have been crossed out. Serena remained. More titles have been added to the back of the paper. I fold the list into 1/8th of its size and stick it in my back pocket every time I go to a library or book store. There are some tiny holes along some of the creases.
Maislin's review of Serena was titled "Couple creates an empire by felling trees and anyone in their way". With that enticing lead in, how did I wait so long to read it? All the book reader's cliches apply: a real page turner, couldn't put it down, etc. But don't just take my word for it. Read Maislin's and some of the other reviews on line. Serena's 370 pages were gone before I knew it. I confess that I did put it down a few times since I read it over 3 or 4 days.
I won't give away the story but it takes place primarily in western North Carolina at the beginning of the Depression. You might guess from the title where the real power resided in the relationship of this power couple invading the mountainous Carolina woods. Some reviewers likened the wife Serena to Lady MacBeth. Besides the main story, we are told that a battle was going on between timber interests and those favoring the creation of what became the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The big losers in these business affairs, besides Serena's competitors, were the workers who faced death and serious injury on a daily basis, something that was of little concern to the timber barons. If you got hurt and couldn't work, you were discarded with no compensation.
I'll have to check out Ron Rash's other novels and short stories. He has also written some poetry which may be of interest to some.
Since writing this 2011 post, I have read and would recommend Rash novels "One Foot in Eden", "Saints at the River" and "The World Made Straight" in addition to "The Cove". I've also read his short story collection "Chemistry and other Stories" and I've added these other shorty story collections to my "to read" list:
"Something Rich and Strange"
"The Night New Jesus Fell to Earth ..."
"Burning Bright"
"Nothing Gold Can Stay"
You can go wrong with Rash.
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