Marchlands

by Karla Kuban

In "Marchlands", Karla Kuban's stunning first novel, she introduces a troubled, intrepid, ultimately triumphant young heroine whose path to womanhood is both original and extraordinarily compelling.Living on a thousand-acre sheep ranch, fifteen-year-old Sophie Behr can ride for hours and not see another person; her closest companion, her horse, Pablo. And Sophie often roams to think -- about Demetrio, the Mexican ranch hand who helped make the baby growing inside her; about her mother and Aunt Alice, who drink every night while watching the television news, hoping to catch a glimpse of their sons fighting in Vietnam; and about her father, who vanished one day when Sophie was four years old.

Sophie's mother -- tough, bitter, and unstable -- warns Sophie never to mention her father's name, but Sophie is compelled to find him and discover why he left. After a frighteningly violent reunion, she seeks refuge and illumination from her grandmother. At once child and woman, Sophie is a precociously wise observer of the tragedies of her own family and of the world.

It is Karla Kuban's masterful sense of place and the startling clarity of her voice that make "Marchlands" such a spectacular fiction debut.

Genres: Fiction, Coming Of Age, Contemporary

270 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1998

Reviews

[Elizabeth McDonald · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic book. Just fantastic. That is all I can say, really. Just a wonderful novel.

[Alice · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book will punch you in the face. Pow! I absolutely loved it.

[Tevilla · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best books I have read in a long time. It is the style of Annie Proulx and Cari Luna. Spare, pointed, the reader has to think. Wow. Why was this book not more successful?

[Kylie McElligott · Rating 2 out of 5]

It never takes me this long to read a book. But Marchlands was rambling and strung out in a way I was never able to get into.
The worst was the dialogue, if there are actually situations in which people have such disjointed conversations I’ve rarely experienced it.
And on that note, what does the author have against quotation marks around dialogue? I’ve heard people claim that books have better flow without them but I would heartily disagree. Their lack only added to the scattered nature of this novel.
Really and truly would take a skip. As I forced myself to finish reading it I continued to hope it would improve but it stayed almost unbearable to the very end.

[Teresa Clay · Rating 5 out of 5]

This author is SPECIAL. Her writing is downright lyrical in her storytelling. This story takes place in the west. I know nothing of the west. Correction: I now know some things of the west. And horses and sheep and ranching and so much more! This novel is cataloged as a coming-of-age. But is simply about life in my opinion. Such a beautiful read, at times laugh out funny, at others so sad, and shocking too. I did not want the book to end. I wanted more. Now I just want to share my love for this novel.

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book ages ago.... as a "Reader's Copy" before it was published. It is one of my favorite novels of the late 90's early 00's. Karla Kubin's young character is a smart, wise & strong young woman striking out on her own despite not leaving home til late in the book. I have tried to get my reading group to read this but we, as a group, have yet to select it! Too bad! I think it's great writing!!

[Laurie Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took me some time to get into it (I'm a distracted reader) but I really appreciated the poetry, stream of consciousness, and the fact that dialogue was not bogged down by quotation marks. Stylistically wonderful. Must say Sophie seemed a bit older than 15/16.

[Les · Rating 2 out of 5]

My Original Thoughts (1999):

Fair. Wouldn't recommend. I didn't care for the author's writing style. The narrative jumped around a lot. Free association? I finished the book, so it wasn't terrible, just not worthwhile.

My Current Thoughts:

Nope. No memory of this book at all. I wonder what in the world possessed me to read it?

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Marchland is a seamless prologue to what I hope can continue in future volumes to expand this girl's life that has been punctuated by life's needs, mysteries and pleasures all leavened with her awakening acceptance of places, people and events necessary to survive.

[Nooks Full Of Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

It started well, lost its way somewhere in the middle, picked up towards the end but the last 30 pages were a letdown...

[Princesa Christensen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't know where to start with this book. The story itself felt real...and it had raw emotions but there was something about it that I was happy it was over.

I understand that this is a coming of age story but I could of done without some of the details of some of the experiences Soph went through.

[Marci · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sophie is a fifteen year old girl who knows her mind and has an incredibly strong spirit as she navigates the world. Her mother is crazy. Her father abadoned her. During the entire novel, she knows what she needs and goes after it. She also has an incredible sense of who she is and what she wants for such a young girl. I enjoyed this book because I admired the main character. She has a hard life, but she strives to make sense of it and her place in the world, which is what probably stuck with me the most. Her knowledge of herself and her strength are inpenetrable--which makes her a lovable character that in all ways endures.

[Carla · Rating 3 out of 5]

I actually really enjoyed this book, not sure why I'm not giving it a higher rating. It's the story of a young girl caught up in all the normal angst of teenage years layered with the complexity of an unbalanced mother, and absent father (who she re-absents from her life once she does track him down) and a life changing summer of life and death. I really enjoyed the way the story gently developed, what I wish I had been given more of was Sophie's life lessons. It's told in the current moment, full of the impulses, assumptions, fears, rages and delights of a teen summer.

[Jamie Cross · Rating 3 out of 5]

Being a Wyoming native, I wanted to like this story, however it fell flat with several relationships that seemed to take on momentum, only to disappear in a disjointed way--from horse to human. A more appropriate title might be "Birthing"--for at the heart such is continually happening and ending both with sheep and humans, though that too seems to stagnate. The last page could've been the first, however perhaps that's the intended brilliance--welcome to the provincial pace of Wyoming.

[Jon-michael · Rating 1 out of 5]

this book was a nnnnoooo......i don't like this one....i read it all the way through because i started it and i wasn't just going to drop it because it's not the kind of book that i would ever read but i read it because someone requested that i read it...so i did and I'm sorry to say that i didn't like it.....

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hate to be cliche but this is a touching coming of age story.

[Lindsay · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too many typos. It drove me crazy. I love reading about rural families, coming of age, blah blah blah, but some of the twists in the last 70 pages drove me nuts.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up mostly because of the horse on the cover... but it did turn out to be a good story.

[Meg Clayton]

novel,1st edition

[Louise Mathewson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't like the first 60+ pages - but then I got into it! She is a wonderful writer and the story was very good, told from a teen mom's perspective.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic story of a strong teenage girl growing up fatherless on a sheep ranch with a mother who's dealing with her own secret demons. Enjoyed this book.

[Conny Strik-Basemans · Rating 3 out of 5]

mooi verhaal