Library Book Club Notes: 'Winter's Bone' Fascinates, Offends
The "country noir" novel written by Daniel Woodrell was the focus of discussion this month by the Richmond Heights Memorial Library's Book Club.
It’s not really fair to call Winter’s Bone, by Daniel Woodrell, a controversial book. It did well and received positive reviews, and the independent film made from it did extraordinarily well, winning awards and high praise from many corners. But, for those who live in the Ozarks, or come from the Ozarks, “controversial” seems a small word. The book is set in the Missouri Ozarks, outside fictional towns somewhere in southwest Missouri, near the Arkansas border. Woodrell is credited with the term “country noir,” and this book is a fine example. It is dark, almost unrelentingly so, with bleak landscapes, terrifying people, an often helpless protagonist and no hope for the future. This is the book’s strength; as many noir fans know, this …
In this Article:
