Customer Reviews

Monuments: A Novel (Sandhill Chronicles)

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In his third Sandhill Chronicle, Monuments, Clay Reynolds tones down the terror and enmity present in Agatite (vol. 2) without returning to the quieter chill of The Vigil (vol. 1). Fourteen-year-old Hugh Rudd comes of age in the midst of his hometown's fight to save its old Hendershot Grocery Warehouse building from destruction by the railroad company executives. Like other boys on the cusp of manhood, Hugh must learn how to relate to women, how to fight with but eventually accept his father, and how to smoke, drink, and question authority. Hugh does admirably well, making this the most positive of all the Sandhill Chronicles in terms of happy endings for the main characters. But the town of Agatite does not fare so well. Caught up in a battle with "big business" (Burlington Northern Railroad), each citizen uses the cause of historical preservation for personal gain. They all use the chaos created during the fight for the building to jockey for new positions of power. Before long, long-held town secrets are being gossiped about in the streets. Learning to deal with this gossip, especially the stories about alcoholism, sexual infidelities, and cruelties of the people he has known all his life (including his own parents), is part of Hugh's maturation process. Clay Reynolds writes realistic, gritty stories about small-town life. If you haven't read one of the Sandhill Chronicles, this is a good one to start with.

Clay Reynolds does an excellent job of setting up the characters and making you feel like one of the town members in Monuments. You have a tendency of rushing through the pages in order to discover what Hugh must face next. You soon realize there is more to the book than a battle to save a landmark. This is a must read!!!