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Scudder Gorge edition by Geoffrey Craig Literature Fiction eBooks

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Scudder’s Gorge shines a harsh light on what man is capable of doing to his fellow man, beginning with the day of the “bomb” in Hiroshima and then moving backwards in time to Eighteenth Century Vermont to a village founded by post-Revolutionary settlers. Nestled between pine-clad ridges, the valley is home to a small band of Abenaki. The settlers and Native Americans trade with each other and live in peace until a love affair blossoms between a young Abenaki and the daughter of a village elder. A crime reverberates down the generations, leading Everett Scudder and his daughter, Roseanne, to struggle for the dignity of all people.

Geoffrey Craig’s fiction, poetry and drama have appeared in numerous literary journals. He has received two Pushcart Prize nominations. Wilderness House Literary Review serialized his verse novel, The Brave Maiden, and his novella, “Snow”. Four of his full-length plays (one co-authored) and nine of his one-acts have been produced. He has directed productions of five of his plays with three more in rehearsals. Geoffrey has an MBA and an MA in history. He served in the Peace Corps and had a successful career in banking before turning to writing. Scudder’s Gorge is his first prose novel.

Scudder Gorge edition by Geoffrey Craig Literature Fiction eBooks

An Engaging Family Saga
The Scudder family, whose members we come to know intimately in this engaging family saga, inhabit the deceptively picturesque hamlet known as “Scudder’s Gorge,” somewhere in northern Vermont. They are for the most part appealing people: stoical Yankee farmers shaped by the rhythms of farming, commitment to family, modest ambitions, and an indefatigable sense of moral decency rooted in the closely-kept memory of a heinous crime committed against the area’s original Abenaki Indian inhabitants. Generations of Scudders stoically meet, and for the most part prevail over, the vagaries of nature, the pressures of a modernizing America beyond their control, the often-thwarted quest for love, and the inescapable injustices of small town life. While tragedy occurs with unfailing regularity, Mr. Craig’s view of the Scudders’ world is ultimately humane and hopeful, and often expressed through the generous, generations-long friendship between them and the down-at-heel but quietly proud Baxters, who represent the last remnant of the Abenakis. An undertow of racism shadows Mr. Craig’s tale, from its beginning in the last years of the eighteenth century through its culmination in the later years of the twentieth, serving to remind us that all may not be well in those quaint New England towns, with their village greens and blindingly white steeples. Craig’s prose is sometimes languorous, and extraneous, and characters too often seem to crowd upon one another confusingly, adding little to the narrative. But Mr. Craig has succeeded in bringing to life the (mostly) quiet dramas of life in a seemingly simpler America that is really not so simple at all.

Product details File Size 1024 KB Print Length 302 pages Page Numbers Source ISBN 1632750554 Publisher Prolific Press Inc. (January 13, 2016) Publication Date January 13, 2016 Sold by  Digital Services LLC Language English ASIN B01AL3GR70

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Scudder Gorge edition by Geoffrey Craig Literature Fiction eBooks Reviews

Calliope’s readers are familiar with Geoffrey Craig’s short stories, as several have appeared in our pages over the years. Although he has had a verse novel and novella serialized in a literary review, Scudder’s Gorge is his first full-length novel.
Scudder’s Gorge is a masterfully told story of family, unrequited and romantic love, hate, secrets, joys and tragedy, and exposes the depths of what man is capable to doing to his fellow man.
Craig’s elegant prose (evocative of the late Wallace Stegner), is impressive; he is like an artist, first using a broad brush to create the background, then employing a smaller one to fill in with details. The vivid imagery he uses to describe the Vermont landscape gives the story a genuine sense of place and atmosphere, and sets the tone for this family saga spanning almost one hundred eighty years and six generations. It is a history that sometimes repeats itself, with sadness and agony. Several themes are reiterated throughout Scudder’s Gorge tolerance vs. bigotry; peace vs. war; expiation for previous wrongs, and respect for all people.
An enigmatic Prologue begins the story, of an elderly Japanese man taking a walk in Hiroshima on the morning of August 6, 1945, stopping at a small temple after several air-raid sirens go off. But, unable to see any evidence of the bombers, he goes outside again...facing the bright flash in the sky...
Then moving back in time, Craig unveils the story of the Scudder family and others who settled on a land grant from the Territory of Vermont in 1795. Out of the wilderness, Lucas Scudder and ten settler families created farms and community. They live in peace, trading with nearby Native Americans, the Abenaki. That is until 1799, when Philomena, the daughter of Lucas Scudder, falls in love with a young Abenaki man she meets in the woods while picking berries with her sister Carrie. Eventually smitten by Susuph, she initiates a sexual relationship, which they carry out in secret places, unknowingly witnessed at times by Sean Reynolds, a mentally-challenged young man from the settlement. Philomena and Susuph want to marry, but an accident changes everything. After their last tryst, Philomena loses her footing and tumbles down a hill.
While Philomena lies unconscious at home, Lucas Scudder and eleven men from the settlement take revenge on the Abenaki, based upon their prejudices and Sean Reynolds’ misperception—that Philomena was raped and battered by Susuph then dumped in front of the Scudder’s cabin.
The settlers raid the village and are met with resistance; a shot is fired by one of the Abenaki, hitting one of the raiders in the shoulder. The ensuing carnage leaves twenty-one Abenaki dead all the young men, five women and seven children. The few survivors flee to the north to another Abenaki village, but the reverberations of the massacre will last long into the future.
Philomena awakens two days after the raid, and when she discovers that Susuph has been killed along with the other Abenaki, calls her father a murderer and cuts off all communication with him. Months later, she delivers a healthy baby boy that she names “Remember,” then dies within four hours of his birth. She has left her sister Carrie a letter, in which she describes the sins of her father and the responsibility of the family to see that such prejudice and violence never happen again.
Carrie marries and raises Remember as her own, and when she dies, she passes on Philomena’s letter to him.
The story moves from the first generation of Scudders slowly into the future, through recessions and depressions, World War I and II, the postwar era and the atomic age, into the late 1960s, and ends during a demonstration against the Vietnam War. And through it all, Philomena’s letter is passed on to each successive generation, a reminder to the Scudders of their responsibility to regard all of humanity without prejudice.
Craig’s deft hand and sensitivity regarding controversial but important social matters draws the reader in and keeps one turning the pages. Highly recommended.
GOOD READ
Beautifully written story of forbidden love between a settler and a Native American in eighteenth-century Vermont. Their courtship is intense, fearless and doomed. Its tragic conclusion affects both communities for generations, inspiring some descendants to redress its dark legacy. Wonderful descriptions of bucolic Vermont. Meaningful themes prompted me to reflect on passion and morality.
A beautifully written story with believable, engaging characters with whom I was able to identify. The different time periods are well depicted and the setting (rural Vermont) is realistic and magnificent. Although we are reminded of the racial hatred and intolerance that have always existed and seem to only get worse, this book leaves us with a sense of hope. I thoroughly enjoyed Scudder's Gorge. Kudos to Geoffrey Craig!
Shudder's Gorge is a very enjoyable first novel. The plot moves along nicely and the pages almost turn themselves. Characters are sharply drawn and seem to remind you of people you have known. There are memorable descriptions of scenes that allow readers to picture them clearly in their mind's eye. The scenic beauty of Vermont is virtually painted by the author.
Scudder's Gorge is an engrossing read. Held my attention from the powerful beginning to the moving ending. The characters are fascinating and easy to identify with. The writing is crisp and evocative. Found myself able to picture the setting and the varying time periods. A captivating journey with a resonating message. Highly recommend it to a broad range of readers.
I enjoyed Scudder's Gorge very much. I felt that I was right there in rural Vermont, with it's spectacular natural beauty and the life of a small farming settlement, and later, town from the 18th to the 20th century. The story is lively and engaging and held my interest the whole time. The book also raises some important issues in a very poignant way in this white settlement situated near a native american village To what, if any extent, do future generations bear responsibility for racial violence committed by their ancestors? Can violence experienced by past generations of a family inspire future ones to help make the world a more compassionate place? Scudder's Gorge was a worthwhile and enjoyable read.
An Engaging Family Saga
The Scudder family, whose members we come to know intimately in this engaging family saga, inhabit the deceptively picturesque hamlet known as “Scudder’s Gorge,” somewhere in northern Vermont. They are for the most part appealing people stoical Yankee farmers shaped by the rhythms of farming, commitment to family, modest ambitions, and an indefatigable sense of moral decency rooted in the closely-kept memory of a heinous crime committed against the area’s original Abenaki Indian inhabitants. Generations of Scudders stoically meet, and for the most part prevail over, the vagaries of nature, the pressures of a modernizing America beyond their control, the often-thwarted quest for love, and the inescapable injustices of small town life. While tragedy occurs with unfailing regularity, Mr. Craig’s view of the Scudders’ world is ultimately humane and hopeful, and often expressed through the generous, generations-long friendship between them and the down-at-heel but quietly proud Baxters, who represent the last remnant of the Abenakis. An undertow of racism shadows Mr. Craig’s tale, from its beginning in the last years of the eighteenth century through its culmination in the later years of the twentieth, serving to remind us that all may not be well in those quaint New England towns, with their village greens and blindingly white steeples. Craig’s prose is sometimes languorous, and extraneous, and characters too often seem to crowd upon one another confusingly, adding little to the narrative. But Mr. Craig has succeeded in bringing to life the (mostly) quiet dramas of life in a seemingly simpler America that is really not so simple at all.