THE ORCHARDIST by Amanda Colpin

It might be a little early to write about this book, because I suspect that I will still be thinking about it a month from now.  Amanda Coplin is a stunningly good writer for her age.  At 31 she has produced a novel that is rich, complicated, and haunting.  Her ability to craft sentences that pinpoint the deeper emotional experiences that make up life is sometimes breathtaking.  I found myself wanting to underline whole passages, not because I had learned something new, but because she had so precisely captured the layers and meaning of experiences I have had.  I was often so in awe of her writing that it would distract me from the story itself.

Having spent much of my childhood in my family's peach orchard I was captivated by Coplin's setting and the characters she creates.  In Talmage, the orchardist, I saw shades of my dad, and even deeper shades of his mentor, Elmer Smith, who would wander into our farm on a regular basis with quiet, homey and wise advice; it was natural for me to love Talmage from the first page.  Having said that, readings Coplin's story was sometimes exhausting for me, with elements that were so intense they seemed to clash with her setting and gentle writing style. It was often so rich that I couldn't read it before going to bed because it would rev up my brain and make sleeping difficult. But now that I've finished the book I realize that this book is not about the plot, it's simply a beautifully written story about the journey of life, about how one person's life touches others, how some of life's dreams evaporate while others are truly realized and how we are simply the sum-total of all that happens to us and around us.  I was completely entranced through the whole book, and then, in the closing two pages (which, for some unknown reason I thankfully had not yet read!), she took my breath away and I re-grieved and celebrated an important part of my life.

Others have compared Coplin's writing to Marilyn Robinson, Steinbeck and others we have loved.  I would agree, and heartily recommend this book.  I'm anxious for someone to read it so I can talk to you about it!