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Souls Raised from the Dead: A Novel
The author of Heading West and Beast of the Southern Wild and Other Stories returns with a poignant, powerful novel of a small town in the tradition of Faulkner, O'Connor, and Welty. Reprint. 12,500 first printing. Tour.
352 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1994
About the author
Doris Betts
45 books13 followersDoris Betts (1932-2012), former Chancellor of the Fellowship of Southern Writers, wrote nine novels and three collections of short stories, including The Gentle Insurrection, The Sharp Teeth of Love, Souls Raised from the Dead, which won the Southern Book Award, and Beasts of the Southern Wild, which was a finalist for the National Book Award. Betts taught at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for 35 years. She was a Guggenheim Fellow and received a medal from the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
April 24, 2013
Ugh. I really wish I hadn't wasted my time with this one! This was for my book club and I'd really like to know who recommended it and why. The story is set in Chapel Hill, NC and follows Mary and her father Frank, three years before the story starts Mary's mother walks out on their family and it's just been Mary and her father ever since. Right before Mary turns 13 she is diagnosed with a serious kidney disease and the rest of the book is her dealing with the disease and her father basically freaking out all the time. None of the characters are memorable or really likable - even Mary. Plus, there are often weird sexual comments/thoughts/whatever thrown randomly into the story and it really stands out in a bad way. I read the first half and then skimmed the rest. It was a pretty terrible story with no redeeming parts that I could see.
May 12, 2012
Don't know why it took me so long to get around to reading Doris Betts, but she is a keeper. This book is about the loss of a child to an incurable illness. She has a family that loves her very much, in particular her father, a highway patrolman. She has two sets of grandparents and a mother who is way too self-absorbed to be a mother.
The book is set right here in the triangle, another thing that I liked about it.
The book is set right here in the triangle, another thing that I liked about it.
March 4, 2018
A sad read, but one of hope. Fave quote: "…how if women-strangers had five minutes together they would become either enemies or bosom friends."
March 1, 2023
written July 1994
Like Barbara Kingsolver, Doris Betts has me reading with a pen in hand, just to underline some of the good lines. NC Poet Laureate Fred Chappell is right that it's hard for a professional reader or writer to read Betts without delight every few pages. Her apt phrases are not as often in dialogue as they are description or feelings or realizations -- Dandy comforting his grieving wife "tentatively round her ankle" (315); Christine noting that her daughter will never be more than "weekday pretty - C average - 75%" (146); Frank recognizing cliches as nasty, universal truths (122) or sitting with "silent old people said to be his parents" (310).
Like Laura Esquivel, Betts offers some wonderful visual images - like the wrecks the book opens and closes with, or Mrs. Torrido as corpse and ghost, or the surgical team disengaging themselves from an operation as if backing out of the patient's body (280). My pictures of the main characters are much less clear; I must not have been paying attention, but I still don't know what Frank looks like, though I know about his bullet wound and his furrowed brow. Jill is clearer, thanks to that great loping tail of hair she sways when she walks (33). But Cindy is hazy too - ignored for half the book then suddenly lovely - and Christine is a cartoon. Betts is at her best with Christine when she lets us hate her, but at her worst when she makes us.
What I value most about this book is its seriousness in the face of horrifying questions. Betts, mainly through the grandmother Tacey, takes religion seriously - and takes seriously both the people who cling to it and the horrors that drive them to (and away from) God. Though this book begins and ends in catastrophe and its fluids (blood, vomit, urine) and in between is one long walk into and through the valley of the shadow of death, it is mostly about the walk, not the valley; those who survive dragging one foot in front of another, not those who die. In this book, as in life, people fear death and flee it and fight it and get tired of it, but they never forget it. And if religion is about "ultimate concerns," then this book is deeply theological. Grandma Tacey and Brother Elmo (the oxymoronic evangelist-trooper) lead the meditations about inscrutable grace, spiritual flu and "conversion by the testicles" (326-7). But everyone follows Biblical patterns and ponders theological questions in this book: "Dandy sent out feeble jokes the way Noah once sent out doves to check the floodwaters" (324); Mary prays "our Mother, who art in New York, hollow be thy name" (288); she wonders if she can get into heaven with missing or extra parts, or whether Heaven is a bio-parts warehouse (292); Frank checks the cosmic ledgers and notes "by any system at all he was owed one. He was due" (36).
I didn't enjoy this book, but it made me think and would make me think more if I read it again or slower. Betts says Mary is like the capons - raised in a totally protected environment that fails. I missed that. What else did I miss?
Like Barbara Kingsolver, Doris Betts has me reading with a pen in hand, just to underline some of the good lines. NC Poet Laureate Fred Chappell is right that it's hard for a professional reader or writer to read Betts without delight every few pages. Her apt phrases are not as often in dialogue as they are description or feelings or realizations -- Dandy comforting his grieving wife "tentatively round her ankle" (315); Christine noting that her daughter will never be more than "weekday pretty - C average - 75%" (146); Frank recognizing cliches as nasty, universal truths (122) or sitting with "silent old people said to be his parents" (310).
Like Laura Esquivel, Betts offers some wonderful visual images - like the wrecks the book opens and closes with, or Mrs. Torrido as corpse and ghost, or the surgical team disengaging themselves from an operation as if backing out of the patient's body (280). My pictures of the main characters are much less clear; I must not have been paying attention, but I still don't know what Frank looks like, though I know about his bullet wound and his furrowed brow. Jill is clearer, thanks to that great loping tail of hair she sways when she walks (33). But Cindy is hazy too - ignored for half the book then suddenly lovely - and Christine is a cartoon. Betts is at her best with Christine when she lets us hate her, but at her worst when she makes us.
What I value most about this book is its seriousness in the face of horrifying questions. Betts, mainly through the grandmother Tacey, takes religion seriously - and takes seriously both the people who cling to it and the horrors that drive them to (and away from) God. Though this book begins and ends in catastrophe and its fluids (blood, vomit, urine) and in between is one long walk into and through the valley of the shadow of death, it is mostly about the walk, not the valley; those who survive dragging one foot in front of another, not those who die. In this book, as in life, people fear death and flee it and fight it and get tired of it, but they never forget it. And if religion is about "ultimate concerns," then this book is deeply theological. Grandma Tacey and Brother Elmo (the oxymoronic evangelist-trooper) lead the meditations about inscrutable grace, spiritual flu and "conversion by the testicles" (326-7). But everyone follows Biblical patterns and ponders theological questions in this book: "Dandy sent out feeble jokes the way Noah once sent out doves to check the floodwaters" (324); Mary prays "our Mother, who art in New York, hollow be thy name" (288); she wonders if she can get into heaven with missing or extra parts, or whether Heaven is a bio-parts warehouse (292); Frank checks the cosmic ledgers and notes "by any system at all he was owed one. He was due" (36).
I didn't enjoy this book, but it made me think and would make me think more if I read it again or slower. Betts says Mary is like the capons - raised in a totally protected environment that fails. I missed that. What else did I miss?
February 4, 2018
3.5/5 stars
There were some parts of this book that I loved and others I hated. The whole thing is very character driven, and everyone is extremely well developed. All of the main characters whose narration is told are complex and interesting, and it was their interactions and growth I was interested in and what kept me reading.
As for things I didn't like, I personally didn't care for how there aren't any chapters. It's not like the lack of chapters ruined the book for me, and I know it's such a petty thing to criticize, but it's not my favorite thing to deal with in a book because it makes it feel like one giant, long, and never ending story, and really...that's what it felt like. The novel is actually pretty short, but it took me almost a week to read it, and that's a long time for me when I usually take three days max on a book of this size. It just felt tedious and sometimes like I had to complete a chore, and I found that that meant I didn't really want to pick it up and get back to the story.
I cared very much for the characters, and the themes of the novel are beautiful and touching all throughout. However, it can be a difficult read that feels like it drags on much longer than it should. Also, it's horrifically sad. In a way, I appreciate it because I know that life is often sad, and we can't always have the happy endings we see in fiction, and so sometimes it's necessary for fiction to mirror real life, but still. The last 30ish pages or so broke me.
There were some parts of this book that I loved and others I hated. The whole thing is very character driven, and everyone is extremely well developed. All of the main characters whose narration is told are complex and interesting, and it was their interactions and growth I was interested in and what kept me reading.
As for things I didn't like, I personally didn't care for how there aren't any chapters. It's not like the lack of chapters ruined the book for me, and I know it's such a petty thing to criticize, but it's not my favorite thing to deal with in a book because it makes it feel like one giant, long, and never ending story, and really...that's what it felt like. The novel is actually pretty short, but it took me almost a week to read it, and that's a long time for me when I usually take three days max on a book of this size. It just felt tedious and sometimes like I had to complete a chore, and I found that that meant I didn't really want to pick it up and get back to the story.
I cared very much for the characters, and the themes of the novel are beautiful and touching all throughout. However, it can be a difficult read that feels like it drags on much longer than it should. Also, it's horrifically sad. In a way, I appreciate it because I know that life is often sad, and we can't always have the happy endings we see in fiction, and so sometimes it's necessary for fiction to mirror real life, but still. The last 30ish pages or so broke me.
May 21, 2020
Set in my home state, written by an author I used to see walking across my college campus, this novel was somewhat unexpected in the memories it evoked. Places I've been and scenes from those college days added to my enjoyment of the story. But it could have been set in another place, another time and still been well-told. Single dad, teenager daughter, grandparents...all feature heavily in the unfolding of the events. And then there's the mother. I'll leave the rest up to you--read it for yourself!
May 1, 2019
At first I loved this book. The author's style and the story caught my attention. However, as I read the book I felt I'd picked up a book Oprah would recommend. Let me explain. Many years ago I read the books Oprah recommended on her show. After a few of her choices I stopped. I felt her choices were too sad. I don't mind a sad story from time to time, but when a sad book drones on and ends with little closer, I can't recommend the book.
December 26, 2019
I’m a kidney transplant patient so this was a hard book to read. The ending was particularly difficult. Seven years post and I fear death every day. Mary’s story was heartbreaking but not as much as Frank ‘s. I could not drum up any sympathy for Christine, even though I’m a mother myself but Tacey is a different story. Her southern strength and faith reminded me of my female ancestors. Overall this was a good story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 9, 2020
Very good read focused on a young girl, her descent into renal failure and the responses of those most intimately involved in her life. Her father, coping while being destroyed. Her mother, singularly dedicated to self and all those in this young girl's orbit are unfailingly human, often humorous and coping as best they can.
July 6, 2021
This felt like just an excuse to name-drop places in NC and near Chapel Hill, which I thought I would like but just found annoying. Would be really annoying if no connection to the area. Bummer of a story, and none of the characters were likeable, aside from maybe Christine's mom. Nothing gained from reading this one.
October 8, 2021
Being from North Carolina I can’t believe I haven’t read a Doris Betts book before now. A very relatable story is told. The characters are very real. I can picture them. It is like I am reading about people I know.
May 28, 2025
It's interesting, but unlike what the title "Souls Raised from the Dead" indicates, it is not gory or satanic. It is, however, heartwarming and very true to life, family love, and sadness. It is a story to remember for quite some time. I enjoyed this novel by Doris Betts.
August 30, 2024
I just reread this book for the first time since 1995 and I'm angry at myself for not making it one of my touchstones that I read every couple of years. It's almost perfect.
April 19, 2026
Kinda banger but ending was a lil unfulfilling.
April 28, 2013
The book's opening scene provides fun and excitement that soon changes to boredom. The book contains no chapters, just one long and wordy descent into the chasm. The books description predicted the death of the main character, and that death was long in arriving. I expected a better novel. I am sure that Doris Betts thought she was emulating James Joyce when she wrote this stream on consciousness, but the method deteriorated the story.
June 24, 2008
Ok this was seriously depressing. They let you become attached to a 12 year old girl, watch her get sick, watch her deteriorate while her jerk of a mother does nothing for her, and then... the girl dies. That is right I ruined it for you. Don't worry I did you a favor. It was well written I guess, but there did not seem to be any redeeming value to outweigh how sad it was.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 19, 2010
What I learned from this book is a new way for my heart to break. The little girl is wonderful, her family strange and real, and the lessons of the book have never left me. I read it ten years ago, still think about it.
July 1, 2011
This book was really amazing. Though it was very sad, the characters were easy to relate to (or be really frustrated at) and it was a very well-thought out book, accurate in my opinion both medically and psychologically. Leominster Library has a copy.
August 4, 2007
I love love love this book. I cried a lot reading it but it was beautiful!
September 5, 2007
It took a little while to get into this book, but once I did, I couldn't put it down.
July 30, 2008
Betts is a wonderful (and overlooked) author from North Carolina. In this novel, like all her work she creates power with understatement, emotion without sentimentality.
Read
May 4, 2009Similar to Jodi Picoult's books on troubled families with sick children. Powerful perspective on the effects of violence
Want to Read
May 5, 2009Feeling unsure about reading this one. Love the fact that it's a Southern novel that includes horses (what could be better than that?!?), but not so sure I can handle the terminal illness thing.
Read
August 9, 2011Very sad. Not my favorite book, but I did love the little girl. The ending left me feeling kind of lost.
November 14, 2012
Full of surprises. Very interesting North Carolina cultural tidbits
June 8, 2012
Great glimpse at the lives of people in North Carolina
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews