Customer Reviews

Beulah Land

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

It's a fine collection, perhaps not the greatest book ever but interesting writing. I've noticed that Krista McGruder has given several negative book reviews and wonder if the Park Slope/Hoboken literary set and friends have decided to flame her in the online forum. Beulah Land got a decent review elsewhere, so it's interesting that the piling on comes from New York environs. Of course, maybe the author should watch herself in when giving negative reviews to other writers.

I found Beulah Land reminiscent of some of the earlier works of Eudora Welty. Southerners enjoy quirky characters and their reflection of the human soul. I enjoyed the book and recommend it to the intuitive reader.

Apparently, a reader is unable to receive a fair review of Ms. McGruder's book as it appears that there are a slew of those that know Ms. McGruder personally - either as a friend or as a detractor. As I do not know Krista McGruder or have never had a book of mine reviewed by her, I will render what will hopefully be a fair review.

The collection, although well-written in many spots, is frankly uneven. There are some notable standouts: "Clan of Marsupials" which renders an interesting depiction of urbanities with a killer first line - red wine getting words faster on a page..."Dirty Laundry" for its character depictions and an O'Henry-esque quality about "The Bereavement of Eugene Wilder" where the burial is cleverly depicted as a fully-realized character. However, "Divination" and "A View from Eagle Rock Mountain" are less successful with winded narratives and some awkward turns and cliché phrases in her prose. "Host" reads entirely rushed and overwritten. The second person/distant narrator technique does not gel with the rest of the collection and feels as if it were a last minute inclusion.

To note that those that cannot handle dense prose should read Danielle Steele is a ridiculous and insulting comment - as if these two writers comprise spectrum ends in literary fiction and those that do not accept Ms. McGruder's prose are somehow flawed, they are reduced as readers. There is a difference between the lyrical poetry of Faulkner and some of the heavy, dense exposition in McGruder's work as in "A VIEW FROM EAGLE ROCK MOUNTAIN" which doesn't propel the narrative forward, and at times, pulls the reader out of the story.

People are too quick to tout new writers as brilliant, the best of their generation. Ms. McGruder's book is promising and exhibits her fine talent as a writer; however, it is not by any means a dazzling work of new fiction from a brilliant mind. Phrases like incredible debut, startling, astonishing are so overused in reviews that they've lost their luster. Keep it simple: it's a good book from a talented writer who perhaps needs to grow a bit more as a writer.

The literary quality of the stories in Beulah Land is not to be underestimated. The pacing is crisp and the plotlines wholly original. Where McGruder lags, her often dense, sometimes difficult to parse, prose is to blame. But the characters are true originals and deserve our sympathy, scorn and every other emotion. This is not a book for people who read light fiction.

The naysayers on Amazon are over the top in criticism. Another reader also picked up on McGruder's problem: She reviews books, frequently giving very negative reviews. I imagine that her take-no-prisoners reviewing style has now caught up with her among the friends of lovers of the beaten-up authors.

Oh, and Toby Press is not a vanity press, unless Saul Bellow, who has published and edited for Toby, needs a vanity press to publish his writing.

I really think this is a 4 1/2 star book but I can't issue that - so it gets 5. This woman demonstrates an incredible range in her work- is this really her first book? Granted, the collection of stories is rather eclectic (from "Dirty Laundry" about an awkward lesbian relationship in New York City to the title story about a disputed church in the Ozark Mountains) but if you are willing to go with the flow, the transitions are worth it.
Some of the prose can seem like "heavy lifting" but I found it challenging and satisfying.
The knowledge she imparts about the details of a wide variety of subjects is quite impressive ( don't take my word for it- read the blurbs on the dust jacket). I found some of the stories very moving like "The Southernmost Point". Others were shocking and perplexing like "Clan of Marsupials".
She takes big risks. Her second-person point of view in Beulah Land is daring and worth gnawing your way through every chewy sentence. Why don't I see this more often?
What I like most about it is that it breaks out of the strong current trend of "semi-autobiographical" fiction.
<Who wants to read another story about a self-absorbed 20-something woman who was abused as a child and is now trying to find her place in the hard, cruel world?? Not me thank you!>
At the very least this is a refreshing take on modern fiction and certainly well worth reading. I look forward to reading more of McGruder and hope that she stays the course with her unique style.

I'd give this book a solid four stars. Although I've never heard of the author before, I got a copy of the book as a gift and was impressed. There are a lot of great stories, especially with details about America that shed a lot of light on the average person's troubles.
I think most people would enjoy this book.

I'd give this collection three stars for the depth of knowledge of the author and the way in which the people are depicted. The characters in Beulah Land are all sympathetic and the author treats them as such.

I found parts of this book hard to read and because I am a friend of a friend of the author have this to say: If you are looking to expand your readership base, then tone it down. Not many people are willing to spend time reading and rereading trying to decide if the writer is super-smart or being deliberately obtuse.

Overall, I think the collection shows a lot of promise and definitely is worth the time.

There are so many writers that start out by writing fictionalized accounts of their own lives. This collection is so diverse and well-thought out and I'm impressed. Not very many first books get beyond the annoying coming of age teenage thing. This one does. Indians, cowboys, farmers, morticians and trappers. It's got a lot of great and memorable characters. Even a Key West setting. I was satisfied with my copy of the book.

The literary quality of the stories in Beulah Land is not to be underestimated. The pacing is crisp and the plotlines wholly original. Where McGruder lags, her often dense, sometimes difficult to parse, prose is to blame. But the characters are true originals and deserve our sympathy, scorn and every other emotion. This is not a book for people who read light fiction.
The naysayers on Amazon are over the top in criticism. Another reader also picked up on McGruder's problem: She reviews books, frequently giving very negative reviews. I imagine that her take-no-prisoners reviewing style has now caught up with her among the friends of lovers of the beaten-up authors.

Oh, and Toby Press is not a vanity press, unless Saul Bellow, who has published and edited for Toby, needs a vanity press to publish his writing.

I experience 3 kinds of books:
1) The ones I read and regret.
2) The ones I read and like but dispose of.
3) The ones I read and find room for on my bookshelves - because I have the sense that I will want to look at it for some reason in the future. Maybe I will read it again or refer to it or lend it to a dear (and reliable) friend.

Beulah Land is the third kind. It is on my shelf. Read it yourself. It is obviously one of those rare books that brings out the passion in anyone- whether they like it or not. Nobody is neutral on this book- and that alone makes it special.I will not say whether I liked it or hated it- but I am happy I spent the time reading it.