Eli the Good

De: Silas House

Narrado por: Silas House

The summer of 1976 should have been the best of times for nature-loving Eli Book, but instead it is filled with terrible changes. His sister begins to hate her country. His beautiful but distant mother is caught between his traumatized Vietnam War vet father and his former antiwar protester aunt, who has come to live with them. And the only person with whom he can be himself, his best friend, Edie, begins to turn inward when her parents split up. Watching from the sidelines while his world falls apart, Eli must take his first courageous steps toward truth-telling and adulthood.

©2011 Silas House (P)2011 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Reseñas de la Crítica

" Eli the Good is this generation's To Kill a Mockingbird." (Pamela Duncan, author of Moon Women)

"As in any good southern novel, it’s the well-drawn characters and rich setting that make this a memorable story.” ( Kirkus Reviews)

"Destined to become a classic." ( Good Reads)

Warmly familiar

What made the experience of listening to Eli the Good the most enjoyable?

I loved the author's slow, lulling reading style. It made the story so real for me. It took me a couple of minutes to get used to his voice, but then I was hooked and in love with it.

What did you like best about this story?

The details of the time period were on the mark. I was reliving my own childhood as I read about Eli.

Which character – as performed by Silas House – was your favorite?

Eli

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Real

House at his best

If I am honest, I almost quit listening a few pages in. I usually find author-narrated books to be best, but the monotone of House's voice was, initially, disappointing. But, this was a purchased book, not a free library listen -- and Silas House had not disappointed me yet -- so I kept going. It didn't take long for my ear to adjust to the rhythm and tone of Eli -- and my heart was so richly rewarded.

‘Preciat’cha, Silas House!

I love this book on at least 4 levels: The writing itself, the professional implications, the performance, and the personal.

Writing:
House is quoted on the art of writing saying that each line should be a poem, and that each character should hold a secret. He absolutely accomplishes this with Eli the Good.

The descriptions are delicious. Silas House’s ability to paint with words is simply breathtaking. He uses words, phrases and rhythm in a way that is distinctly Appalachian. At times the descriptions carry the arc of the mountains jutting into the landscape. At other times,, they flow like creek water rolling across smoothing stones.

As a (mental health) therapist, I am often frustrated by the way writers miss the nuances of how the humans human. Silas House misses NOTHING.

In Eli, I particularly appreciate the way he invites us into complicated truths around the Viet Nam War. He pulls us between Stanford the veteran and his sister Nell: Two people from the same family system coming from the same place of fervent desire for the good of all, completely disagreeing on how to play that out.

The reader/listener is left to sort the pieces for ourselves. The way House leaves the interpretations to the writer is entirely consistent with the Chickamauga/Cherokee traditions of storytelling from that same region. It’s a dialogue between storyteller and recipient, poignant and powerful.

Professional Implications:
I’ve had the privilege of serving as therapist to veterans of several wars. The chaos of Viet Nam changed so much about how we do, and how we view, war. Our foundational understanding of trauma has come, unfortunately, from our war fighters’ experiences.

From my work with vets and also domestic trauma survivors, I feel that Silas House does a fantastic job of showing the gaps in our understanding of PTSI in that era. He also nods to the greater understanding we have today in a manner that is unforced, yet clear.

Performance:
I had eaten up 5 of House’s other books on Audible like candy before getting to Eli the Good. The narrators, (especially Kate Forbes) were excellent. So excellent, in fact, that I MIGHT forgive one of them >cough cough cough< for pronouncing “Appalachia” wrong! But listening, I still found myself wishing that Silas House had done the narration himself.

Turns out, my wish had come true BEFORE the other books had been done!

House’s words and phrases are lush in and of themselves, but that Kentucky rhythm is a very specific, holistically integrated music. As a descendant of many families from that area, it resonates for me in profound places. Those words, delivered in just that way, ground me.

Personal:
Silas House hands me back pieces of myself/my hidden roots much like Toni Morrison’s 30-Mile Woman does for her character Sixo in Beloved. He fills in gaping holes in my hidden family story as his characters embody that place. (His other books did this powerfully, through multiple generations as well.)

He places Eli at 10 years old during the US Bicentennial. I also turned 10 that year. I have vivid memories of the 4th of July celebration on the National Mall. I can still see the mostly naked young woman in star spangled banner halter top and hip huggers, dancing to the National Anthem in front of us, much like the “fan girl” in Eli’s story.

I was the skeptical Josie, and the part of Eli that never felt quite right about patriotic displays, not really understanding why. And I was adult Eli, protesting the wars that followed 9-11, out of a great love for what I hoped our country could be.

The characters in Eli the Good, like all of Silas House’s characters, have that ability to hook into the familiar and tell the story of human experiences in all of their complexity, even when the reader’s life has been nothing like the characters’ lives - at least on the surface.

At the end of the day, we are all humans in search of meaning, of belonging, of understanding.

Thank you, Silas House, for inviting us to meet you here in your inimitable way, recognizing the interdependence of all things.

I’m grateful for your writing, for your work teaching up and coming writers, and for the ways you preserve and share a culture that is intrinsically tied to the past, present and future of the people here in Turtle Island.

‘Preciat’cha.

Excellent book read by author

The book is excellent, hard to put down, and is made even more enjoyable by the author’s reading and his rich voice.

Eli the good

Struggld to finish the book at first but half way through that completely changed loved this book.😀

Silas House is Awesome

I loved this book and even more because Silas House narrated it! Highly recommwnded! I'll read anything he writes...or reads!

Love Silas House

Books by Silas House are a complete joy. His description of life and relationship stirs memories. Having the book read in his mesmerizing gentle voice just adds to the experience.

Vivid Descriptions

I love Silas House and hearing him narrate this was beautiful. Truly emmerses you into that world!