From the Bookshelf of Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge…

Shadow Country

Peter Matthiessen,

Anthony Held (Narrator)

Start date: December 6, 2019

Finish date: February 2, 2020

Discussion: 2020 Read Harder Challenge

Find A Copy At

Group Discussions About This Book

Showing 2 of 38 topics — 3,194 comments total

2020 Read Harder Challenge

This topic has been closed to new comments.

* 2020 Read Harder Challenge
By Book Riot · 1 post · 3933 views

last updated Dec 06, 2019 03:56PM

Task #20: Read a middle grade book that doesn’t take place in the U.S. or the UK
By Book Riot · 90 posts · 1679 views

last updated Dec 31, 2020 02:39PM

What Members Thought

Apr 27, 2009 Martin rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010books, favorites

Shadow Country is BIG, in every way, shape, and form. In fact, it used to be three books -- a trilogy written in the 90s by Peter Matthiessen, which he says he wrote as one enormous book and had to split into three at the behest of his publisher. Once published, though, he spent a decade rewriting and revising the books back into one volume -- albeit one 900-page behemoth of a volume. The single novel, (re)titled Shadow Country, is set in southwestern Florida in the 1890s and early 1900s, and re Shadow Country is BIG, in every way, shape, and form. In fact, it used to be three books -- a trilogy written in the 90s by Peter Matthiessen, which he says he wrote as one enormous book and had to split into three at the behest of his publisher. Once published, though, he spent a decade rewriting and revising the books back into one volume -- albeit one 900-page behemoth of a volume. The single novel, (re)titled Shadow Country, is set in southwestern Florida in the 1890s and early 1900s, and retains the loose structure of three sections, or "books," which each detail the life of E.J. Watson -- a notorious Florida sugarcane planter, outlaw, family man, murderer, etc etc -- from different perspectives. First we hear from those people surrounding Watson, his "friends" and neighbors. Next, his son Lucius assumes center stage as he pieces together his fathers' history for a biography years after the fact. Lastly, E.J. Watson himself narrates his own tale. If it sounds like a lot, it is.

I didn't do myself any favors when I convinced myself I could read this book during a two-week span over the summer, before starting a grad program. Needless to say, I finished only the first third by the time my allotted weeks were up. Then once my school started, any time to read for pleasure diminished to nonexistent levels, so I grabbed sections of the book as best I could, wolfing down as much as I could in brief moments, here and there, between assignments, on weekends when I couldn't read one more page of schoolwork. It helped/hurt that the book is incredibly readable and sucks you in in an instant. Recently (it's winter break now, so I'm blissfully free) I missed my train stop and then stumbled onto the wrong train as I completely lost myself in the story -- the last book that caused such engrossed confusion in my life was The Road, one of my very favorite books. The point is that this isn't a book you can breeze through in a week, it's a book you want to settle into over the course of a month or more. In my case, almost four months. Hey, what can you do?

The epic and erratic length of time it took me to finally finish this Bible-sized novel didn't help me keep track of the immense cast of characters, all of whom are related by birth or marriage (or common-law marriage), and many of whom (primarily but not exclusively the women) increase confusion by unhelpfully changing their names. I eventually gave up on flipping back in the book to keep everybody straight, and by the end, I had ultimately intuited pretty much what I needed to know about the characters. Surely a better and more thorough reader would have kept a comprehensive character list handy...sadly, I am not that reader. When I reread this book, though, shortly after my retirement, I will absolutely put together that character list.

With my own foolhardiness and general poor timing working against me, in combination with the sheer mass and complexity of the book, it's a miracle I enjoyed the thing at all. And I didn't just enjoy it, I loved it. It's an absolutely incredible book, as harsh and unflinching as Cormac McCarthy with some of the beautiful sentences and easily digestible, yet poetic, descriptions that I love from Richard Ford or Philip Roth. There is brutal frontier violence, striking psychological insight into literally every character that appears in the story no matter how briefly, and huge themes about the building of America, the natural world, destruction in the name of progress, the struggle for individual power and freedom, the United States' history of racial prejudice, the nature of truth...and more. Matthiessen's author bio describes his "parallel career as a naturalist," which is apparent throughout the book in his lingering, elegiac descriptions of land, flora, and fauna -- all of which adds an extra layer of poignancy to the whole tale as one reflects on how much more progress has been made at the expense of nature than that which these characters at the end of the 19th century all lament. Remember: if it sounds like a lot, it is. It was also more than worth it in the end. I haven't been so engrossed in a book in quite some time, in spite of everything.

Side note: although this comparison is largely backwards, I was often reminded of P.T. Andersons' movie There Will Be Blood as I read Shadow Country -- E.J. Watson, the main character in the book, is huge and indomitable and perplexing and frightening, along the same lines as Daniel Plainview from that film. (Embarrassing or not, I often heard Daniel Day Lewis' voice when Watson spoke; is it wrong to utterly conflate two totally different works of art like that?)

At any rate, I can find virtually nothing to criticize about this novel, aside from, perhaps, the massive length. If I had to find something to complain about -- and I do, natch -- I might suggest that "Book II" starring E.J. Watson's doting son Lucius, dragged occasionally. The immediacy of books one and three are undeniable, and Lucius combing through historical records, trying to get at the decades-old "truth" about his father can't quite match the arresting excitement that the deeds themselves afford. But even at its dullest, everything still really moves at a terrific clip -- I suppose trying to squish three books, and 1300 pages, back into a 900-page whole will force a certain amount of expeditiousness.

In spite of everything, I loved this book, massive in size, scope, and theme; it never failed to fascinate and thrill and disgust and rivet throughout. The only thing sadder than having taken four months to finish the damn thing is that now it's over and I have to say goodbye. ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Jun 11, 2009 Alice rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, historical-fiction, florida

I had difficulty putting this epic novel down but the rating choices limit me to marking it a three. In reality, I would give it a 3-5 but I'm too lazy to struggle with articulating the whys and wherefores.

It is a gripping, haunting, and mostly well-told story. Read some of the other reviews for help in deciding whether or not you want to read it.

Its historical/geographical settings were the biggest draw for me and having just visited Chokoloskee and Ted Smallwood's store/museum a few weeks ago ...more

Like · see review