Well the premise would be cool...if written by someone who actually grew up in Appalachia instead of hearing about it secondhand.
I just do not vibe with the condescending romanticization and folksy-ization of certain cultures by people who seem to be from outside of them. It feels weird and exploitative (especially when it's done to historically impoverished regions like Appalachia. Especially by someone with a business degree.) Similar things happen a lot in books set in the American south and it's gross every time. We're like, actual human beings, not cryptic-but-charmingly-quaint caricatures.
It's one of those phenomena where you can't point out exact quotes because it's just a feeling that permeates the entire work, so people who don't get it just think you're being hateful and don't take you seriously. I promise I wanted to love this. I didn't even read the author's bio until I got this feeling from the book.
Two stars because I can't bear to give it three, but I also don't feel like it deserves one. If the author wrote something that felt more in their wheelhouse I do think it'd be good because this is far from the worst book I've ever seen. I'd be pretty hesitant to recommend it to someone, but if one of my teens was tearing through every good witchy book I had and was about to run out, I'd consider mentioning this one.
I just do not vibe with the condescending romanticization and folksy-ization of certain cultures by people who seem to be from outside of them. It feels weird and exploitative (especially when it's done to historically impoverished regions like Appalachia. Especially by someone with a business degree.) Similar things happen a lot in books set in the American south and it's gross every time. We're like, actual human beings, not cryptic-but-charmingly-quaint caricatures.
It's one of those phenomena where you can't point out exact quotes because it's just a feeling that permeates the entire work, so people who don't get it just think you're being hateful and don't take you seriously. I promise I wanted to love this. I didn't even read the author's bio until I got this feeling from the book.
Two stars because I can't bear to give it three, but I also don't feel like it deserves one. If the author wrote something that felt more in their wheelhouse I do think it'd be good because this is far from the worst book I've ever seen. I'd be pretty hesitant to recommend it to someone, but if one of my teens was tearing through every good witchy book I had and was about to run out, I'd consider mentioning this one.