Penhally

by Caroline Gordon

This narrative of a landed Kentucky family, traced over four generations, shows the decline of its patriarchal order, overwhelmed in the twentieth century by an irresponsible individualism. “The best American novel I know.”—Ford Madox Ford. Southern Classics Series.

Genres: Southern, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Book Club, Novels

298 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1931

About the author

Caroline Gordon was an American novelist and literary critic who, while still in her thirties, received a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1932 and an O. Henry Award in 1934.

Reviews

[Jacob Russell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Precursor to Gone with the Wind, and a better novel.

[Cindy Marsch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ford Madox Ford said when this book came out in the early 1930s that it was the best American novel he knew. After reading it, I see what he means. It's not perfect, because the reader has to work hard to keep all the layers of generations straight, and a better structure might have helped with that. But then Faulkner is similarly labyrinthine (The Sound and the Fury, e.g.) and still worth the trouble. I found myself experiencing the Civil War from the inside with characters who were living it rather than as most novels do, self-consciously reaching back from modern times to interpret things for us. Gordon has faithfully conveyed her family (or its fictional version) with the loyalty and irony and bemused affection of kinship, and she leaves us sitting uncomfortably with the reality of all that. Harriet Beecher Stowe may have awakened people's sensibilities to the evils of slavery with the ham-fisted moralism of an outsider, but Caroline Gordon reveals the humanity of all concerned with a subtlety that should make us all squirm.

[Drew Norwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Caroline Gordon’s first novel, and a good novel it is. A story of decline. A story of property, honor, and competing family lines down through successive generations of one Kentucky family. Be warned, though: it starts slow and Gordon does not make it easy on the reader to acclimate. The scenes change abruptly and shift between time (sometimes indicated but sometimes not) and perspectives. Once you catch on, her manner of building the narrative--in brief scenes, snatches of memory, mixed in with major events, all from different characters and over several generations--is very fitting.

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took a little while to get some names straight and their relations....nonetheless this book is a trip to a land far away and long ago...full of characters both good and bad...one constant was the estate and land. Loved the ending it went from sad to somewhat satisfying rapidly.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating to read about the history of Kentucky, with vivid scenes of the Civil War and a real zinger of an ending, but overall, it didn't quite sing. Some allusions were just a little too vague for my taste, and sometimes the layers of family names were a tad confusing to keep track of.

[Lynn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Even though Ford Maddox Ford highly praised Caroline Gordon's work, I found it a bit obscure. The many interior monologues demanded more attentive reading than I wanted to offer. Reading late at night as I do, it just didn't seem worth it to wade around in the prose trying to sort out flashbacks from foreshadowing. Gordon did offer an interesting look at Kentucky plantation culture as the Civil War and Reconstruction affected and finally dismantled it over the span of four generations.

[Caleb Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very perceptive look at the decline of a prominent Kentucky family from antebellum to modern times. The family is an example of the decline of the South in general. Very entertaining read, but the ending will make your eyes roll a little.

[rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

What.