Review by EdwardIreland93 -- Beyond the Higher Ground

[EdwardIreland93]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Beyond the Higher Ground" by Thomas A. Brigger.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Written by Thomas A. Brigger, and set in West Virginia (the heart of the opioid epidemic), Beyond the Higher Ground is a novel centered on the experiences of the protagonist, Mason Tucker, while he is overseeing a construction project in Wells County. Crushed by the death of his wife, Tucker welcomes the opportunity to start anew that his move to Wells County represents. Unfortunately, Wells County, far from being the secluded, peaceful place that Tucker envisions, turns out to be a bastion of drug abuse and crime. In fact, Tucker appears to be in imminent danger, as he is constantly harassed and even physically assaulted by an unscrupulous individual who seems to have an interest in Tucker’s rental home. In order to forestall the threat to his safety, Tucker will have to work fast to piece together the fragmented history of Wells County that his new neighbors have provided him with.

Among the many things to be admired about Brigger’s novel is his deft handling of different narrative techniques. A great example of this is the way Brigger is able to invite his readers to view the story from the perspective of Mason Tucker, thereby making it easier for the reader to be sympathetic to the plights of his principal character. Brigger accomplishes this by utilizing a third-person limited narrative perspective in addition to fragmenting the narrative in such a way that the reader’s knowledge of the fictional world develops in line with that of Tucker’s. We, for instance, only find out new information about Wells County or Tucker’s harasser when Tucker is treated to such information by means of his neighbors’ recollection of the past. Similarly, there are moments in which the narrative seamlessly slips into streams of consciousness and we, the readers, are privy to Tucker’s thoughts and recollections about his past at the exact moments those thoughts and recollections occur. In addition to this, Brigger is masterful at developing his characters’ voices, as each have a unique, inimitable voice in keeping with their respective personalities.

While the novel’s character development is, for the most part, exceptional, there are certain characters to whom Brigger devotes a significant amount of time and attention who turn out to be inconsequential in the grand scheme of the narrative. Chief among such characters is Sally Wellman, the wife of Tucker’s landlord. Apart from being well-regarded by Tucker and having a distant familial tie to the novel’s chief antagonist, Sally Wellman’s character does not have enough thematic significance to merit the attention she receives in the first half of the novel. It is true that she has been, in some form or the other, affected by the opioid crisis, the death of loved ones, and other such issues which the novel explores. The same, however, can be said of many of the characters encountered in Brigger’s novel. The decision, then, to devote so much time and attention to the development of characters such as Sally Wellman, as opposed to others, seems arbitrary. Though I am in disagreement with this editorial decision, however, it is one that I am willing to forgive, as the book is otherwise structurally very well-edited. As far as copyediting goes, there are but a few minor typos that are also forgivable given their infrequencies.

The novel contains profanity and violent scenes, so I would definitely not recommend it to kids. However, I would recommend it to adults. Though the novel contains profanity, the author’s use of such language is not forced or exasperating. Rather, the use of profanity in strategic places adds to the delights of the novel by helping to replicate natural speech, and, thereby, creating more authentic voices. Similarly, the author does not come across as a sensationalist in his treatment of violence, but he also does not shy away from including mildly violent scenes when necessary.

Overall, I rate this book a 3 out 4, though if I could add a half point to my rating I would certainly do so, since the true quality of this novel seems to lie somewhere between good and excellent. Bigger displays a great deal of knowledge of his craft, and I would recommend this book to an adult reader interested in historical fiction, crime fiction, the opioid epidemic or any other issue or theme that this book deals with. In fact, I would recommend this book to any adult literature lover in general.

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Beyond the Higher Ground
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[Adanna Inya]

Wow! This sounds like a great story. I hope Tucker is safe. Heaven only knows what he'll discover about his hood.

[gen_g]

This sounds like a good read, although I hope that the author takes your suggestions about character focus to heart. Thanks for the review!