Customer Reviews

The Ballad of Trenchmouth Taggart: A Novel

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One might expect a book with such an intriguing title as The Ballad of Trenchmouth Taggart to deliver a good story, and Book I of M. Glenn Taylor's does just that. Book I reminded me of Charles Frazier's Cold Mountain salted with a bit of Foxfire mountain folk lore. In the person of the orphan Trenchmouth Taggart (TT),eponymous for the disease that plagues him throughout the book, Taylor creates a colorful, sympathetic character. In Books II and III, however, TT's story seems to collapse, strain the reader's credulity as the protagonist attempts to escape a violent past by assuming a variety of aliases: Chicky Gold, A.C.Gilbert, and finally "Ace" (the moniker Ace for a mountain man?). With each aka, TT assumes a new role (blues harp player, newspaper man, handyman, sage...)and the book takes on a Forrest Gumpian ambience;the character wins a Pulitzer for a hillbilly piece he writes on the character of John Kennedy and then carries the reader with him along the trail of numerous current events (Viet Nam War, Desert Storm...). Equally strange was the 3rd person narrator referring to TT's dentures as "pearly whites," having a surefooted mountain man who survives W. Virginia winters on acorns "hotfooting it" from one place to another;saying "Shoot," when asked if he would respond to a question.... It seemed perfectly credible for a mountain man who no doubt could "bark a squirrel,' to be sniping at the kneecaps of Company thugs hired to protect the interests of corporate mining companies, but when a character who survives off the land, lives in the hills and hollers of back country W. Virginia, a character who sews soles on his moccasins using the penis bone of a raccoon for a needle laments he is missing "the Showcase Showdown portion of "The Price is Right," this reader and storyline parted ways. The Ballad of Trenchmouth Taggart is a good first novel(I did discover a new musical instrument, the theremin)--but it is a FIRST novel.

Ok...me read anything about history, I don't think so! Not my normal read, I'm more a fantasy/SciFi reader. But wow, I loved this book. I finished it in 2 days. It was engaging and very funny. Glen's insight into people is intelligent and real. This book is a lesson in what is right and wrong and how doing wrong is sometimes right. It is about learning from your mistakes, about second and third chances and about everyday hero's. It's about how one person can touch so many lives and not realize they can make a difference, good or bad. I loved it and yes this would make a great movie...I would be first in line to see it!!

This book not only gave a wonderful sense of history but presented it through deep characters. Trenchmouth Taggart is also very dramatic and at times a page-turner. A friend of the author suggested I read the book which turned out a wonderful recommendation. For a first book or any number book, I have to recommend Trenchmouth Taggart very highly. Kudos to M. Glenn Taylor!

Glenn Taylor has done something pretty remarkable here in creating a gripping story that follows the protagonist's entire life from birth to death. The title fits perfectly, as this really is an epic ode to a man who has lived his life like none other.

The story is divided into three parts, chronicling Taggart's childhood and adolescence, adulthood, and old age. Like Taggart, the chapters are interesting and too the point. Here we have a character who is the polar opposite of dull, unlike any other in literature. As the prologue tells us, Taggart is a "one time inventor, snake handler, cunnilinguist, sniper, woodsman, harmonica man, and newspaperman" and at the point from where the story is told, he is also the "oldest living Homo sapien" in West Virginia. (So much for the stereotype of West Virginians as a bunch of simpletons doing simple things with their lives.) Throughout the story, Taggart changes names multiple times. He goes from sniping coal operators to being offered a staff job at the New Yorker, from living homeless in the woods of West Virginia to a one-room apartment on Chicago's West Side. He is a man who is as busy as a hustler and as hard-working as a rancher but he always stays true to his roots. Trenchmouth Taggart is truly a spectacular character.

The prose of this story is as strong as the character it describes. I've never been to West Virginia, but it seems as if Taylor's writing really encompasses the voice and spirit of this region. He also exhibits his skills as a storyteller in bringing the elliptic plot full circle. Throughout Taggart's fantastic changes in name, profession, and location, the narrative stays cohesive. Again, like Taggart himself, the story is something that on the surface seems out of control but is completely solid at its core.

This was a very entertaining story. And as one reviewer already stated I got the impression of Forest Gump also, just a lot wiser. Great story, it was fluid and fast and it immediately pulled you into the places and things that were happening. I didn't want to put it down and I couldn't read it fast enough. I didn't really like the authors hidden agenda about mountain-top removol, that should be a subject for another book, iit almost ruined the book for me, but he strayed away from it just enough to overlook it. Other then that you can't go wrong with this book. Glad to see someone finally write something positive about this beautiful place.

This is a supremely well-crafted, artful novel. The protagonist is a fascinating guide through over a century of West Virginia's scarred, heroic history. BTT is, first and foremost, great storytelling from a very talented young writer.

Rarely do you come across a book that so pristinely captures an era with such grittiness and literary clout as this one does. With characters so rich in both context and depth, it's nearly impossible to put the book down with out feeling like you just ate a big turkey. Characters this colorful haven't been seen by the likes of me in sometime. The pages are literally dripping. Glenn Taylor has created a triumph.

A finalist for the 2008 National Book Critics Circle Award, "The Ballad of Trenchmouth Taggart" is M. Glenn Taylor's debut novel. Beginning in 1903 and continuing up to the present day, it is set in West Virginia and recounts the life story of one Early Taggart - nicknamed 'Trenchmouth' on account of his diseased gums - through his many careers, from his early beginnings as a snake-handler and sharpshooter to acquiring fame first as an expert harmonica player and then as a Pulitzer-prize winning journalist.

In a story that transcends such a long period of time, it is difficult to maintain the sense of authenticity, but the author succeeds in bringing Trenchmouth's world alive. His research and passion for his subject are clear, and he brilliantly depicts the gradual evolution of life in West Virginia - his home state - as it faces up to the intrusions of corporations, politicans and modern technology alike. And as the world changes, so Taylor's protagonist, Trenchmouth, continually takes on new identities - reinventing himself with different names, settling in new places and establishing new friendships with a host of colourful and individual characters. The narrative voice is engaging throughout: often gritty, direct and to the point, yet at other times flowing and lyrical, like the ballad style that the novel seeks to emulate.

While the setting and voice are well realised, however, there appears to be little structure to the narration of our hero's life. The pace rarely changes gear, and the lack of a basic hook to grab the reader's interest is problematic: no particular reason is given why we should care for the protagonist or be interested in his tale; no questions are posed at the outset to which we seek the answers. Of course this is a novel driven less by events than it is by character, but even then, the objective style of narration employed by the author means that it is difficult to ever see inside Trenchmouth's mind, to understand his motivations and desires. Perhaps this was part of the author's intention - demonstrating that each of us is essentially unknowable, whil also maintaining the aura of mystery around his folk-hero protagonist - but for this reader it proved frustrating.

Beautifully written and vividly imagined, "The Ballad of Trenchmouth Taggart" presents a largely positive, life-affirming message: showing us that we don't have to be defined by our past, but can change our ways, take on fresh challenges and strive to improve ourselves. At the same time Taylor offers some interesting musings on the relationship between memory and reality, fact and fiction, myth and truth, and the relative importance of each of these in shaping both individual lives and wider society. Despite this, however, the lack of a clear narrative arc means that it is hard for the reader to fully engage with this novel.

The Ballad of Trenchmouth Taggart was a fun and very interesting read. The characters and places came alive for me. The three parts of the story are truly a ballad and I found myself only putting the book down when I finished a part. One of my favorite books is Tortilla Flat (John Steinbeck) and The Ballad of Trenchmouth Taggart is a semblance in its character development and emotional participation. I recommend reading it.

An unusual story...but would really make a great movie script...hard to get into, but the longer I read, the more I liked it....the main character was alot like the Gump character in the Tom Hanks movie...it was almost too outrageous to be believeable....well written...story line flowed evenly...