Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver
I’d seen a real buzz about Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver on social media, so was very pleased when I spotted a copy nice and cheaply in Sainsbury’s. (The books at Sainsbury’s generally haven’t been as good this year as they usually are.)
Demon Copperhead is the story of a boy called Demon Copperhead. It’s not his real name, but nobody in Lee County in Virginia is known by their real name. The book is narrated by Demon, looking back on his life, going right back to his dramatic and mess entry into the world.
Lee County is a poverty-stricken area and Demon lives in more poverty than most. Raised more by his neighbours than his mother, when he thinks life couldn’t get any worse, it always does. Nobody is on his side, apart from his neighbours, but they’re getting too old to care for him full-time. The social workers and foster carers certainly don’t care what happens to him.
It’s easy to forget just how young Demon is, when he has seen and experienced so much that children should never see or experience. There is a lot of death. Everyone in Lee County seems to die tragically young and nearly everyone is a drug user or dealer.
Apart from the last few chapters, everything that happens in the book takes place before Demon’s 18th birthday and A LOT happens. Hardly any of it good.
There are lots of characters coming in and out of Demon’s life – most of them with connections to each other. In Lee County, pretty much everyone he meets is the cousin or stepbrother of someone he already knows.
Demon Copperhead is a really tough read at times, but Demon’s voice is so engaging and authentic, that it is somehow entertaining even when his life hits rock bottom. It has shades of both Shuggie Bain and My Absolute Darling.
I didn’t realise until I read the acknowledgements at the end that it was inspired by Charles Dickens’ David Copperfield. Just like David Copperfield, Demon and all those around him were let down and damaged by institutional poverty.
Demon Copperhead is an absolutely brilliant read and definitely one of my favourites of the year. It is a long book and it can get pretty disturbing. If you can handle a disturbing book, I would definitely recommend it. But if stories of neglect and drug use aren’t your thing, you are probably best to steer clear!
