Shiner: A Novel

"Wren Bird, 15-year-old daughter of a lightning-struck preacher called White Eye, may live isolated on the outskirts of a dying Appalachian coal town, but she understands myths and secrets. It is local myths that anchor her snake-handling father’s dwindling gas station congregation, secrets that keep her mother and her mother’s best friend, Ivy, so close, lies that bind family and community together. Amy Jo Burns writes a version of Appalachia that is one step removed from magic – all strychnine and moonshine and powerful wonder. There are pieces of Shiner that read like dreams and others that come on like nightmares, creating the push-pull tension in Wren’s heart: the desire to escape her Appalachian home and the sure knowledge that she’ll carry it with her no matter how far she runs."