Hannah Coulter by Wendell Berry; Counterpoint, 2004. 186 pages; $16.95 (paperback); reading level: adult.
The year is 2001. Hannah Coulter is looking back on the seventy-nine years of her life, spent mostly in the fictional Kentucky town of Port William. In words that are both plain-spoken and elegant, she chronicles her childhood, the loss of her first husband in World War II, her long marriage to a second husband, the raising of children, the joys and heartaches of the community “membership” that keeps her small farm and others going, and, most poignantly, the inevitable changes that the passage of time brings. Berry has created a fully-imagined world here. A map of the Port William area and a genealogy of its families is appended; also included is a list of companion books Berry has written about other characters who are part of the “Port William Membership.” Through Hannah’s story, Berry brings old-fashioned principles to mind while avoiding the trap of legalistic certainty about the mysteries of life that are beyond understanding. This is one of the wisest books I have ever read.
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Connie Nordhielm Wooldridge, Author
Biography | View
- Just Fine They Way They Are (Calkins Creek, March 1, 2011)
- The Brave Escape of Edith Wharton (Clarion Books, 2010)
- Thank You Very Much, Captain Ericsson! (Holiday House, 2005; Berndtsdotter Books, 2012)
- When Esther Morris Headed West (Holiday House, 2001)
- The Legend of Strap Buckner (Holiday House, 2001)
- Wicked Jack (Holiday House, 1995)
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