Character_development

Summary This book follows nine main characters whose lives are deeply impacted by trees in one way or another. The story unfolds in four parts that mirror the sections of a tree: roots, trunk, crown, and seeds. Thoughts Writing a review for this book leaves me conflicted. The ‘Roots’ section sets the stage for the rest of the novel, yet I find myself wishing the book had concluded there. With its numerous main characters, the narrative functions almost as an anthology of stories about individuals, and often, several generations of their ancestors. This part of the book is outstanding—moving, thought-provoking, and, I believe, achieves what Powers intended: to view lives through the perspective of trees, or in “tree time”. You are presented with a series of images, events, tragedies, and triumphs, all the while knowing that these would be encapsulated within several inches of growth in a tree’s trunk. The subsequent sections strive to intertwine these characters in various ways as they seek to elevate awareness of industrialization’s impact on the planet. Although convincing, these sections lose the originality of the first, often veering into more predictable plot lines reminiscent of a classic Greenpeace-type narrative, akin to “Avatar”. Here, you have industrialists looking to exploit the planet’s natural resources and protagonists fighting to thwart this exploitation. In conclusion, I highly recommend the first section, and if you’re like me, you’ll complete the book out of a sense of obligation. You won’t consider it time wasted, but it won’t be a transcendent experience either. Reading this book will change the way you look at trees.

Summary David Copperfield unsurprisingly tells the story of a character named David Copperfield. We see him, albeit retrospectively, grow from a very young boy into a middle-aged man. Along the way, we meet a host of characters who fill the structure of Copperfield’s life with color. Thoughts I can’t help but view this book through the lens of recently reading Kingsolver’s “Demon Copperhead.” I realized that Kingsolver’s book was inspired by David Copperfield, but I did not realize just to what extent. In short, “Demon Copperhead” could be considered a retelling of David Copperfield set in modern-day Appalachia. This affected me in a few ways; for one, it made the story less exciting because once you realized just how closely the plots in the two books were connected, the twists and events were spoiled. Secondly, it made for an interesting dynamic where you read, in a sense, to see what was redacted from the new book. As Camus says, “The censor shouts aloud what he proscribes.” Although this is an interesting way to consume a story, it probably isn’t how Dickens would have wanted to be read. With that out of the way, the story itself was good, if not a little long in the tooth at places. The characters were really strong and memorable. It has the optimism of pre-modern literature that is always a breath of fresh air. If you had to pick one to read, I would always default to the original book; this case is no exception. Dickens is a master author on default settings; he will entertain but seldom surprise. I always enjoy my time with him but have yet to be deeply affected by him. ...