a land more kind than home by Wiley Cash
When Wiley Cash published his debut novel a land more kind than home in 2012, he received an abundance of praise. I can see why. Filled with Biblical themes of courage and faith - revenge and redemption, the novel is intelligent and immersive. Wiley’s beautifully writing shows his deep appreciation for North Carolina language and dialect. He transports us to the town of Marshall, a rural community in the western part of the state. Wiley’s characters are submerged in the area’s traditions and insulated from the wider world. It is a gripping and tragic tale about the power of nefarious religious leaders to influence ethical people into making horrifying choices.
Jess Hall is one of three narrators and the hero of the story. At nine-years-old, he is an observant and intelligent boy who loves his thirteen-year-old brother, Christopher. Jess feels protective of his mute brother, whom everyone calls Stump. His brother makes sense to him. It is the adults who are confusing and puzzling as Jess observes the dissonance between their words and their actions
The villain of the story is Carson Chambliss, the pastor of River Road Church of Christ on the outskirts of Marshall. With verbal dexterity, he convinces the hard-working congregants that it is safe to challenge the will of God. Using snakes and fire, he shames them into testing their faith. Many get burned and poisoned. But still, they return.
Miss Adelaide Lyle is a congregant, a mid-wife, and the second narrator. She knows of the evil that has occurred in the church and yet doesn’t go to the authorities. Instead, she teaches Sunday School far from the church building where Chambliss preaches. Clem Barefield is the third narrator and the sheriff of the county. He understands the people in this community well. Though he has his demons, he seeks to be a moral man.
Jess and Stump’s mom trusts Pastor Chambliss. One day Jess and Stump see something the adults don’t want them to see. The next day Stump is taken to a healing service when the “healing” gets out of hand, and Stump dies. The perspectives of Jess, Adelaide and Clem combine as we learn of the story of Stump’s death on the alter at Chambliss’s church. And the reason Stump was “chosen” has little to do with healing. The situation is more complicated than the townspeople know. Nonetheless, they follow this evil charlatan Chambless. As Adelaide tells us, “People out in these parts can take hold of religion like it’s a drug, and they don’t want to give it up once they’ve got hold of it. It’s like it feeds them, and when they’re on it, they’re likely to anything these little backwoods churches tell them to do.”
The novel’s well-developed characters and dramatic narration make it a compelling read. We learn about the back story and the carnage that occurs after Stump’s death. I only wish that Wiley Cash had given his disabled character, Stump, a voice. Though the book is critical of rogue religious figures, I also wanted Cash to be more condemning of manipulative evangelical churches. This uncritical loyalty Cash writes about can affect wealthy urban people as easily as poor rural people. People have hard lives, and faith can ameliorate pain. As Adeline says, “Lord knows that when people don’t get what they need, they take what they can find.”