Salt

by Isabel Zuber

In this beautifully crafted debut novel, poet Isabel Zuber deftly traces the joys and the sorrows of a passionate but troubled marriage in Appalachia at the turn of the last century.

Anna Stockton was a bright and imaginative child, reveling in a rare wild freedom in the mountains of western North Carolina. As a young woman possessed by romantic yearnings and a great love of books, she hungers for a new kind of life for herself. John Bayley is a hard-driven hill farmer who carries with him the pain of the early death of his father and the loss of two previous wives. When a sudden encounter brings the two together, Anna and John marry into a difficult and passionate union, one that mirrors the changing, sometimes violent, and often haunted times in which they live.

Turning her jeweler's eye upon the members of a small rural community, Isabel Zuber weaves together the lives of John and Anna's family and friends in a deeply moving account of exultation and despair, of grief and ghosts. A novel worthy of the element that gives it its name—an emblem of work and sacrifice as well as of blessing and preservation— Salt is entrancing, piercingly honest fiction that gazes deeply into the human heart and yields the wisdom that such scrutiny brings.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction

352 pages, Hardcover

First published March 6, 2002

Reviews

[Pappy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was torn on the rating for this book, then finally settled for 4 stars. There wasn’t much to get very excited about in this story. Very little going on that would make this exciting for many readers. But what got me the most about this was how beautifully written it was. This was the story and legacy of Anna. A woman who lived a life for her family and how her life affected others. This was a surprisingly great story and I am very happy to have found it.

[Kasey · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting story that follows a woman throughout her lifetime. There was something very powerful about this novel that I can't quite put my finger on. It brings a longing for simple pleasures and the closeness of family. Fans of Fannie Flagg should enjoy this novel.

[JG (Introverted Reader) · Rating 3 out of 5]

John Bayley meets Anna Stockton when she's in her late teens. He decides right away that he's going to marry her. She looks to be a strong woman who knows how to work. After burying two wives, that combination appeals to John. The rest of the book follows the ups and downs of their marriage and their relationship to the land.

My biggest issue with this book was that I somehow felt like I was watching a silent movie as I read it. I felt very much outside the story. I got the feeling that this was done on purpose so that I the reader would be more focused on what the author was trying to show me rather than on how I felt about each character or event. It was effective, but I do like to feel a connection to the characters I read about, so it wasn't a style I cared for.

There was a lot going on in this book. The point didn't really seem to be the story itself, but rather to explore man's relationship to nature and also man's relationship to other men. What I took away was a message about humanity's need to dominate our surroundings and how futile that need is. Nature will win in the end. I also took away a message about the futility of our hopes and dreams and how we are ultimately so impermanent that we will be nothing more than a fleeting memory. This is all true, but it's a little bleak for my taste.

The author is a poet and it shows in her lyrical, yet succinct prose. She says a lot in such a relatively short book, but she says it beautifully.

Salt left me thinking, and I believe I will think about it for a long time. But ultimately I did feel too far removed from the story to give it more than three stars. This will appeal to those who are more interested in a message than in caring about characters. It was a strong book, it just wasn't necessarily to my taste.

[Kae Larsen · Rating 1 out of 5]

I felt this book was extremely depressing, and the best feelings I can describe while reading this book is melancholy. I only finished it because by the time I had gotten into it 90 pages and realized it was going nowhere I had invested enough time I finished it. It is the story of a happy girl in childhood who marries a man twice widowed and her life from that time forward. I have a very hard time understanding how there are so many 5 star ratings on this book? I will give it this, it is well written, albeit in a depressing manner.

[Vicki · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most wonderful books I've ever read. Not a reader of historical fiction, I picked this up at the library - thinking first it may be the book that the movie with Liev Shreiber and Angelina Jolie starred in of the same name. But reading the jacket, and finding it not to be that story, something still led me to check it out...luckily.

I read several reviews here that said 'nothing happens' and 'depressing'...'no plot', 'kept waiting for something to happen'. Luckily, there are as many positive reviews because I can't imagine what these others were thinking. This was one of the best character-driven written books I've ever read. The fact that the author is a poet by nature led to beautiful prose, and the sub-story of Fox Woman that Anna tells herself is masterful.

To remember how families functioned back in the late 1800's and early 1900's - the role of women, the arguments of education versus farm life makes me grateful for those people and the choices we now have from that evolution.

To those that said 'nothing happens' in this book I'm not sure what you're looking for. Everything of life is here...births, deaths, love affairs, family strife. Oh, well there's no aliens or parallel universes; no superheros...just a story of regular people succeeding and failing within the confines of their defined lifetimes.

[Dawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Multi-generational story set in Appalachia spanning the late 19th to mid 20th centuries. The story revolves around the troubled marriage of a volatile couple. Ambitious Anna and twice-married John live and work on a farm and raise a family that includes his children from his previous marriages. Narrow-minded community members illustrate the societal issues of the time involving religion, education, and traditional gender roles. The writing is delicate yet impactful and effectively portrays a particular place and time in history.

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite times in history, one of my favorite places. Appalachia in the late 1800's early 1900's. Beautifully painted with words. Not much to say. Just read it. Loved it.

[Jessika Hoover · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved it. I've always been of the opinion that poets tend to write the best books--and Isabel Zuber just reaffirmed that. This story is absolutely riveting. I was so captivated by every word, every sentence. Not much really happens plot-wise in this book, but it was still very enjoyable. It tells primarily of the marriage and lives of Anna Stockton and John Bayley. Isabel Zuber took great time and detail to describe this family's story while remaining historically accurate. This isn't a novel to leave you feeling warm and fuzzy inside. It's actually quite a bitter novel. I for one was very bitter towards John and how he held Anna back from her dreams. I kept hoping throughout the book that she would find a way to break free from John and his oppressive nature. I suppose she did that through sending her children to school and instilling a greater love of learning in them. However, even though Anna didn't find her happy ending, she quickly grew to be my favorite character out of the book. Her story was empowering, in a way. I also really enjoyed the rustic feel of this novel. It's set in the South, mostly on various farms and there is a feel of that slow, laid-back Southern lifestyle. On a side note, the quotes/verses about salt also kept the novel interesting and I thought that was a fresh, unique idea. Also, even though this is a work of fiction, it is a very believable story.

Overall, my favorite part about this book was Isabel Zuber's writing style. Her poetic nature really shined through and lent the story a beautiful structure.

[Nathan Ham · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book takes place in a fictional town, but it's right near where I was born and raised. I've seen mixed reviews about Salt, but I really enjoyed the novel. If this had taken place somewhere outside of communities that I know about, it might not have been such a great read to me, but I think that played a big part in my enjoyment.

I think this book does do a good job of portraying how life was in the mountains of North Carolina in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

[Sarah Haman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I learned even more about life in the mountains

[Bobbi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Because I live near where this story book place, I picked up this book hoping to like it better than I did. I was somewhat disappointed. I felt nothing for any of the characters, other than perhaps Roland, who finds letters to his mother as the book begins. By the time I finished the book, I'd totally forgotten this and had to go back and reread it. The story was just OK, so without well rounded characters, it felt sort of flat.

[Lizzann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written story set in the NC mountains from 1873 to 1987. salt follows three generations of a family focusing Anna. She is a woman who knows their is a wide world outside of her immediate circle but never
sees it for herself. She marries for passion and the fact that she became pregnant. John is a passionate lover but is ruled by his temper and fierce devotion to acquiring land and working it to its full potential. He is also a philander and Anna wonders just how many bastard children he has sired. She is also of the land but in a natural and spiritual sense. She is "the salt of the earth "

As she lies dying of cancer she reflects (p.298)

Oh, please don't forget. There're too many of us who are forgotten, Julia, Belle, all of us who never had a chance, never went anywhere, never amounted to a thing. Just tried to be good wives, get our work done, and raise our children to do their best.

Her sons and stepsons never forget!

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully written book following a strong, self-aware, intelligent woman from childhood to adulthood, who dreamed of more than the house work and breeding that woman were often raised to do during the early 1900s. It’s a deep, time-spanning read with wonderful, detailed writing that doesn’t feel too heavy. But to be honest, it was a depressing story overall. It’s realistic about how hard life was back then for everyone, especially women and children (and POC, but that is barely touched on except in passing), and it’s frustrating to see what Anna has to put up with. You just keep hoping that things will get better for her, that there will be a sudden, big change. There’s no doubt many people will love this book, and it deserves the love, but I personally wouldn’t read it again and wouldn’t recommend it to anyone I know. There’s enough depressing stuff in the real world already.

[Lauren Deloach · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book because it peeks into the world and what it was like for farmers in the late 1800s. I found the style of writing interesting because I was trying to find the main character, but there isn't just one. I thought it was Anna, the farmer's wife, but about 3/4 the way through, it's all from the husband's perspective. I really identified with Anna because of how hard she works and still manages to keep her family together. She was basically super-mom. I didn't like some of the events that happened though and was kind of disappointed near the end of the book. But I suppose that books can't always have a happy ending.

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book. Somehow, all books written about characters living in Appalachia seem to speak to me, maybe because they are always so somber. The life there is, and was incredibly hard, and to me, sad. This book weaves the story of two families together at the end of the 1800s, and past the first World War. Anna, and her husband John, struggle to raise their family amid hardships and sacrifice, but also with a tenacity that brings preservation of the generations. The quotations about salt lend themselves very well to the events and characters.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved all the verses containing the word, salt. This family was so tied to the earth and its generosity. Season to season it was different. I loved how Anna and her boys loved books and learning when it was considered idleness and unnecessary. I cheered them on while wanting John to soften and relent.
Loved the simplicity of the time period and the family details. No huge plot twists, just a family with love, secrets, and ghosts.

[Nancy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think I meant to read the book on the history of Salt, but I reserved this at the library instead. It was ok, interesting historical fiction. I kept waiting for something big to happen but it never did. The book plodded along and I plodded along with it.

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good book and well written. What keeps me from rating it higher is I always felt at a distance from the characters as I read. They somehow never came to life and as such I never came to care about what happened to them. They were always just characters in a story. Too bad.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read, but too choppy in some spots!

[Kitty Tomlinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tale of Anna Stockton Bayles and her marriage and family. Beautiful book.

[Crystal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book I have ever read. First time I read it was three or four years ago and I have re-read it twice more. I find myself thinking of this book and its characters often.

[Fran · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my all-time favorites

[Mary sipp rigby · Rating 2 out of 5]

aaaa so so

[Carrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful and poetic, with a bit of melancholy but wholly relatable, even though it takes place in the late 19th century and early 20th century in Virginia and Tennessee.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fictional account of North Carolina mountain history from the viewpoint of a few families whose lives connected from the late 1800's. Covers several familial generations.

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dark. Southern. Poetic. That sums it up.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was another 3.5 for me. Very good read. The main character--Anna Stockton--was well developed. I liked her.

[Rachel Kemp Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a beautiful book. I couldn't put it down. I'm not sure why it isn't more well-known. I thought the characters were realistic. The plot was interesting. I loved it.

[Melody · Rating 3 out of 5]

Poetic and atmospheric, but also kind of detached and depressing.

[Irene Bean · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marvelously bitter. Well written.