The number of books I have to read, whether they are on loan from my sister, on hold from the library, or my own books sitting on one of my bookshelves, keeps growing. So much so that I’ve decided to come up with a pattern to read them. This read is from my bookshelf. The next read is an e-book from the library. Following that I will be visiting one book on loan, before going back to the bookshelf. The only damper in my plans… The annual Library Book Sale is this weekend, and who knows what I could find. Wish me luck!
Book Read: Shiner
Author: Amy Jo Burns
2021 Book Count: 22
Wren Bird has always lived a sheltered life in the backwoods of a West Virginia mining town. At fifteen, she has never gone to school, is educated through a friend’s curriculum, doesn’t have an address, goes to town only for groceries, and sees very few visitors. The visitors are always the same - her mother Ruby’s best friend, Ivy, and Ivy’s children.
Wren’s father is a local preacher, famous for his serpent handling and having one white eye. Each and every Sunday, he stands in an abandoned gas station, wielding his serpents and praising the Lord. His white eye is proof of his gift and the reason he has such a hold over the community, as well as Wren and her mother; how he got his white eye is legendary.
Then, a miracle involving Wren’s family turns into a tragedy. Wren’s world begins to shatter over the course of a single summer. Everything that was the truth no longer seems that way. Wren will have to uncover her mother’s history and the truth behind her father’s legend. With the truth, Wren can envision a different life than the one she was taught to see.
I added Shiner to my “to read” list a while back; when my birthday came around, I included it as one of the suggested gift options I sent to Matt. I knew I wanted to read it, but honestly, I completely forgot what it was about until I sat down to start it last week.
When first reading the synopsis again, I was worried it would be too similar to Where the Crawdads Sing. Yes, it was clear it wouldn’t be the exact same, but the thought crossed my mind.
Shiner held its own. It’s honestly not like Where the Crawdads Sing at all, with the only exception being it is about a young woman living a sheltered life, away from sociey. I was relieved.
It’s not a lengthy book; it’s less than 260 pages and reads quickly. I read the book in three sittings because once I started, I had to keep going. It helped that this book was divided into 4 parts - two parts from Wren’s point of view, one from Flynn’s and one from Ivy’s.
Flynn’s and Ivy’s gave me the backstory I was looking for; together, they told readers about the previous generation and gave the history as to why things are the way they are now. Thinking back, I actually preferred it this way. If we had only Wren’s point of view, we would always be missing something. By including these other parts, Burns made sure the readers got the whole picture, and the whole picture is something.
Shiner is definitely different from what I would consider my typical read. It was intriguing. At times, I didn’t know what to think, but I knew I wanted to keep reading. The plot was completely unbelievable to me, yet Burns sucked me in. She’ll do the same for you.
Next Read: Second First Impressions by Sally Thorne
