Lord The One You Love Is Sick, Kasey Thornton, Ig Publishing, 2020, 229 pp
In the November, 2020, selection of The Nervous Breakdown Book Club, from indie publisher Ig, a slice of life plays out in a small North Carolina town. It is an enlightening read in terms of the supposed conflict between Red states and Blue states. I say supposed because it is my belief that Red vs Blue is a political construct that smothers the actual complexity of American lives.
Kasey Thornton grew up in a town similar to the one she writes about. She still lives in that community. She put this debut novel together by collecting the stories she had written about life in her town. The book reads like a novel, at least it did for me.
After the fatal heroine overdose of his best friend, Dale's life becomes almost impossible. He feels guilty for abandoning his friend, he is training to be a cop, and his marriage is on shaky ground. As all of this plays out, other residents of the town come into the story.
The drugs, the poverty, the vanishing economy, and all the secrets held combine into an explosive mix. The adults are facing down cancer, diabetes, mental illness; the kids are living with instability or abuse; the women are trying, and often failing, to stand by their men.
Yet there are strong religious beliefs and codes of behavior that include not facing reality. I have found this conundrum in much of Southern fiction: Faulkner, Flannery O'Connor, Eudora Welty, Robert Penn Warren, Jesmyn Ward, Carson McCullers and more.
These issues and conflicts are probably present in any community. The title here comes from the Gospel of John in the story of Lazurus. When he falls ill, his sisters Mary and Martha send a message to Jesus: "Lord, the one you love is sick." If you were raised on the Gospels you know the rest.
Even Jesus had a secret plan.
Sounds like an interesting read... And the conflict between Red states and Blue states is surely relative at the moment.
ReplyDeleteI did find it relevant.
DeleteThe Red\Blue divide is an oversimplification. However, sometimes such over oversimplifications are sometimes necessary.
ReplyDeleteI have not read Hillbilly Elegy but in some ways this sounds similar.
I was not particularly impressed by Hillbilly Elegy, but I found what I was looking for there in this book.
Deletehumans eschew complexity. any simple theory is better than reality, apparently...
ReplyDeleteApparently.
DeleteSounds like this book does a much better job in providing an insight into the issues mentioned in this book than many recent books on this subject. I haven't heard of it and I'm sure it's going to pack a punch, but I'll look it up.
ReplyDeleteYou are right, it does!
DeleteThat's an insightful comment regarding a recurring theme in Southern fiction and pretty much spot on I would say.
ReplyDeleteWhy thank you, Dorothy!
DeleteYes I think a lot of dwindling communities would suffer from these, I know drugs are prevalent in our poorer areas. Thank you for sharing Judy.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your reply, Heather.
DeleteFor sure an interesting read and Red VS Blue is for sure relative today.
ReplyDeleteI've seen this book here and there and never really clicked it, or read the synopsis. But it sounds like an interesting read and I feel like it could educate me!
ReplyDeleteIt certainly did educate me. People are just people. I mean I already knew that but this gave me another example of that truth.
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