A parchment of leaves Book

When Saul marries Vine, a young Cherokee woman, the settle in Kentucky, the Appalachian mountain region. They live with Saul's mother Esme until they can build their own cabin. They eventually move into the new cabin, and have a daughter they name Birdie, and for a time they are happy. It is, however, a time of war, WWI, and Saul, a logging foreman will have to work away from home on a distant mountain. Saul's younger brother Aaron has long pined for Vine, and even though he has a wife and child of his own now, Saul's leaving gives him the golden opportunity of finding Vine alone.

The beauty of he Appalachian mountains, so wonderfully and visually described, can picture the setting in my mind, almost smell the wildflowers. Stunning. The love between Saul and Vine, their little family, can be emotionally felt. The longing Vine has for her own family, missing Saul, trying to cope alone, feeling shown, not just told. This is only the second book I have read by this author, the first an arc of one that has not been published yet, but they both have common themes. Characters that feel forced to do something out of their nature, an act in which they will carry a large portion of guilt. Something that will cause hurt to others peripherally involved as well as to themselves. Secrets kept that will slowly fester, spreading out until they find it possible to forgive themselves, and try to set things right.

This author is fantastic, his storylines, the way he tells the story, the details he includes, for me raises his fiction to a higher level. The prejudices of the day, Native Americans, thought to be second class citizens, looked down on. Dislike, hate for the things we fear. Some things change, some don't. He includes many things, important issues, love for family, connection to the land, all in a relatively short novel. I have discovered a new writer to cherish, and will be reading more from this author.