Demon Copperhead
by Barbara Kingsolver · first published 2022
70% recommend30% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Coming-of-age novel about a boy growing up in modern Appalachian poverty, praised for its beautiful, clever writing and sharp look at how the region has been failed. Suits readers of emotionally rich literary fiction.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
"Anyone will tell you the born of this world are marked from the get-out, win or lose." Set in the mountains of southern Appalachia, this is the story of a boy born to a teenaged single mother in a single-wide trailer, with no assets beyond his dead father's good looks and copper-colored hair, a caustic wit, and a fierce talent for survival. In a plot that never pauses for breath, relayed in his own unsparing voice, he braves the modern perils of foster care, child labor, derelict schools, athletic success, addiction, disastrous loves, and crushing losses. Through all of it, he reckons with
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…both epic and intensely personal and cozy. It's not to everyone's taste and that's fine, but she's a great writer for people who are looking for that sort of vibe. Tangentially, I'd heartily recommend Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver to folks who liked The Goldfinch
on “Stolen van Gogh Painting Worth Millions Returned in an IKEA Bag” ↗Barbara Kingsolver's book "Demon Copperhead" is a gut punch of a look at the degree to which Appalachia has gotten fucked over over the years, and is also just an absolutely fantastic novel with some of the most beautiful writing I've read in years:…
on “After Appalachian hospitals merged, their ERs became much slower” ↗Barbara Kingsolver - Demon Copperhead. It took me a while before it clicked that the book's title was meant to rhyme with David Copperfield. It's really well written coming-of-age story of a life lived under modern-day poverty. It's well…
on “Ask HN: What's the best book you've read so far in 2024?” ↗…favorite book this year has to be The Divine Farce, I haven't been gripped by a story like that in years. A short stay in hell falls in the same category. I'm still reading a book by Barbara Kingsolver: Demon Copperhead. It's really good and I like the story, but I have not finished it yet since I can't seem to find the time for it. Some other short stories like an inhabitant of Carcossa...
on “Ask HN: What did you read in 2025?” ↗Some highlights from this year include: - The Saint of Bright Doors by Vajra Chandrasekera - Shroud by Adrian Tchaikovsky - Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver - The Devils by Joe Abercrombie - A Frog In The Fall (And Later On) by Linnea Sterte (A graphic novel) Overall I'm at 65 books on the year—I maintain a reading list[1] on my personal…
on “Ask HN: What did you read in 2025?” ↗…Annihilation (Jeff VanderMeer) 08. The First Law Trilogy (Joe Abercrombie) * this encompasses three long books; however, I consider them one long epic novel 09. Mailman (Stephen Starring Grant) 10. Demon Copperhead (Barbara Kingsolver) 11. Lessons in Chemistry (Bonnie Garmus) 12. Hench (Natalie Zina Walschots) 13. Personal Librarian (Marie Benedict) 14. In Cold Blood (Truman Capote) 15. Life We Bury (Allen…
on “Book recommendations from Hacker News?” ↗Best novel of the year for me: Playworld by Adam Ross. I read a lot of books for work, talk to people who read a lot of books, and that is my #1 recommendation. Also this year I enjoyed Demon Copperhead, Mobility, Land of Milk and Honey, Afterworld, The Terror. Many of those books aren't new, but I enjoyed them in 2025.
on “Ask HN: What did you read in 2025?” ↗…the murder investigate by an alcoholic Scandinavian cop, the Danish publishers have you covered. Want to read "Meditations" in Danish, well screw you. Want to read the most popular book on this list, Demon Copperhead, well to bad. Slaughterhouse-Five you can get, for more than three times the price of the English version. I get this is probably different for Chinese, German, French or Spanish, but for smaller language…
on “Show HN: Crunching 1,200 Authors' Favorite Reads of 2023” ↗Very cool Ben! I love the idea and seeing the results collected is fun for finding some books I missed this year. I haven’t heard too much about Demon Copperhead. Adding that one to my list.
on “Show HN: Shepherd – I asked 1,201 authors for their 3 favorite reads in 2023” ↗I like this, thank you for building it. My wish is that the book blurbs were better. For instance I click on Demon Copperhead to learn "What is this book about?" And what I see is "*A SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER* WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR FICTION TWICE WINNER OF THE WOMEN'S PRIZE ..." That's marketing garbage (in all caps,…
on “Show HN: Crunching 1,200 Authors' Favorite Reads of 2023” ↗