It took me a while to finish this book, but I enjoyed it. This story of a logging community in Northern California is beautifully written. The characters are all interesting and well developed, even the ones who aren't very likeable. This was not an easy read, and there were pages I skipped due to the content (infant loss, animal death, strong language), but it was a powerful and moving story. This is Davidson's debut novel, and I am looking forward to what's next.

Thanks to Scribner and NetGalley for the ARC.

The year is 1977. Colleen and Rich live on Damnation Spring with their son Graham (nicknamed Chub). Rich is a logger and Colleen is a homemaker (and occasional midwife). Their lives are set against the backdrop of beautiful Redwood trees and a conflict between the "outsiders" (tree-huggers, hippies, environmentalists) and the workers in the community. Much of the plot centers around Colleen wanting to have a baby (she has had several miscarriages before), Rich trying to conceal a secret about their finances, and Colleen's ex returning to town to take water samples determining that the water may be toxic. And while this all sounds really interesting, the pacing wasn't for me! While it is immensely well written, the book lost my interest during the lengthy logging scenes in which logging jargon was tossed around. If you love historical fiction with detailed exposition, please pick this book up!

I did not enjoy this book as much as I was hoping to. It was slow and the story line was just dragging. It was honestly hard for me to get through this one.

This book did not take me where I originally anticipated, yet I loved every minute of my journey through these pages. The story that follows Rich and Colleen through family, community, health and relationship conflicts kept me turning the pages- but what truly invested me in this book was the people. Calling them character feels an injustice because their passions and flaws were so authentic, they had to be real. Truly a marvelous read!

Damnation Spring
Damnation Spring is a book about the old growth redwood forests of the American PNW, but the switch is that it is told from the perspective of the families who make their living cutting those magnificent trees down for lumber.

Following the Gunderson family, Colleen, a young mother, her husband, Rich, a lumberjack, we encounter the hazards, fears and tragedies faced due to poverty, environmental collapse, politics, and family relationships. The characters are well drawn, and the descriptions so spot on you will feel stuck in the mud along with the characters.

It took a while for me to adjust to the dialect and language of this book, but it was done with such authenticity and confidence that once I was a chapter or two in, I was thinking in those phrases and patterns of speech. I think this author deserves kudos for making this happen.

I'm all for treating our characters badly to develop the story, but these folks never seemed to get a break. It was hard to keep reading, realizing that inevitably, something bad or worse was coming. Perhaps that is the situation in this part of the world. In the end, I felt terribly sad,

This book was down right boring! I cannot believe how much technical details there were, and not enough narrative for my taste. I really struggled and finally had to give up, because it felt like nothing was moving the story forward. It could have been a beautiful book; the premise was promising, but the execution fell completely apart for me.

I've borrowed this book physically from the library thinking I wasn't getting into it because it's an ebook, sadly is wasn't the case and I can't carry on. This book became like a weight on my shoulders, every time I got a glance at it, I was filled with dread and then guilt.
The writing is so nice that I feel guilty for not enjoying it, but this just dragged on for me. I usually read large chunks of books and finish them quickly. After the first 100 pages took me a week to finish, I am giving up on this one.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange of an honest review.

Ok so loved this book. A simple tale of love, work, and marriage that asks how far one family and one community will go to protect their future.

Yet it was so poignant and deep. Loved the narrative. The english was steady without the use of heavy Jargons.
Wirth your time,

A very interesting novel -- the characters are well drawn and the story is compelling.
Definately worth a read.

I did not enjoy this book as I hoped to. It was about a family of three. Rich and Colleen Gunderson and their son Chub tackling life in a California logging town in 1977. It had its moments of interest. I had a hard time being able to focus as the descriptions were way too wordy and way to long. I could not identify with anyone as I was getting through pages and pages of description.

This is not my typical read but I was gripped from the start and it only got better.
The writing and plot development are brilliant and the characters are so real.

The plot revolves around the workers for a logging company where the work is arduous, dangerous and performed by loggers who have done the job for generations.

Colleen and Enid are sisters who are trying to raise their children together in the midst of hardship and heartbreak.

The logging company has been targeted by eco warriors who believe that the spray used on undergrowth is a risk to the environment and the health of the workers.

Colleen has a child but has had eight miscarriages which is a fact that is breaking her heart. She is a midwife and begins to see babies born with birth defects and she begins to wonder if it is true.

The action is intense as people take sides and the management of the logging company are being less than truthful to the works who are being to think they are doomed.

As a nurse working in the labor and delivery unit I can relate to Colleen so much. The raw emotion within the characters and allowing the reader to discover that there is no right side is flawless

I’m judging the L.A. Times 2021 fiction contest. It’d be generous to call what I’m doing upon my first cursory glance—reading. I also don’t take this task lightly. As a fellow writer and lover of words and books, I took this position—in hopes of being a good literary citizen. My heart aches for all the writers who have a debut at this time. What I can share now is the thing that held my attention and got me to read on even though it was among 296 other books I’m charged to read.

A stunning portrait of what is happening to our land… the relationship between the environment and the people. And the pacing. This book moves. “Rich thumbed the blower on full blast and cracked his window down a half inch. Rain tapped the hood. Up valley roads, across creeks, in town and the glen, men walked through this rain to their trucks, wives looking up from the dishes, pausing the length of a prayer. Be careful. What beside prayers kept any of them alive? Luck, the steady hands and quick judgment of men he’d known all his life, men who swung an arm up over the seat back, reversing down their driveways as Rich did now, fog eddying in his wake, rain beaten yard sign listing below the weeping willow:

THIS FAMILY SUPPORTED BY TIMBER DOLLARS”

I did not enjoy this. I think it is going to be a big hit because I see mentions of it everywhere but man, it was a slog I wouldn't wish on anybody. I simply didn't care about anyone or anything in this book. Do even loggers care that much about logging?? Who is the audience here? It sure isn't me.

Excellent read on climate change and what forests do for our environment. Hood fictions story woven in.

Set in one of the last stands of northwest redwood forests and reporting on the battles between families and ecologist over logging and protecting the huge trees this is an exciting page-turner with unexpected and surprising twists and turns that keeps the reader engaged, involved, and guessing. Enjoyed the read.

Damnation Spring is a story about hard-working people caught between trying to make a living through logging and dealing with increasingly obvious environmental concerns. It takes place in 1977 and 1978 in northern California in redwood country. Rich and Coleen Gunderson find themselves torn when they realize that there is likely no coincidence in the large number of miscarriages, birth defects, and dying animals and the constant spraying of herbicides by the logging company that employs most of the men in the area.

The story started off a bit slow, with lots of logging-related jargon but I quickly learned not to worry about terms I didn’t understand and I found myself drawn to the characters, to the descriptions of the landscape, and to the dilemmas the community members were facing - and the neighbor vs. neighbor activity that ensued once the environmental issues were brought to the forefront.

Many of the characters are unlikeable, but the main characters, Rich and Colleen and their young son “Chub” were absolutely wonderful. The ending both saddened and disappointed me. (I can’t say more without it being a spoiler.)

I visited this very area a few years ago, on a long drive down from Oregon to LA, and marveled at the amazingly huge redwoods we were able to see. So hard to imagine what the area must have been like before all the logging.

Thank you to NetGalley and Scribner for the opportunity to read an advance readers copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

While I received the eARC from NetGalley, I wound up listening to the published audiobook by Simon & Schuster Audio, thanks to my local library. The narrators, CJ Wilson, Rebecca Lowman, Mark Sanderling and Candace Thaxton, did an excellent job with the many voices.

This book. I have things to say.
The start and build up were long. It started rolling about 40% and was so good that I managed to get some day reading in, even with the fab five home from school. The characters were so unique and full, yet normal and relatable. The timing jumped around a bit from chapter to chapter and I wasn’t always sure if hours or days had gone by or if it was a different person POV from the same time.

The subject matter is personal to me. When I was young, the electric company sprayed the same chemical over our land to clear the right of way for the power lines. There was legal action involved and they now have to get permission to do anything on our land.but where was the outrage in 1980 in West Virginia? There wasn’t any.

The last five percent of the book didn’t need to be written! End it at the S&L with his eye on the pet store and the necklace. I finished this book right before I clicked off my lamp before bed and I couldn’t sleep because I was so pissed off. And then I had weird dreams. I’m not sure what kind of artistic license was needed to end that way, but it was unnecessary. But I guess that’s why the place is called Damnation. Sigh.

I was given an advanced copy (post publication) for my honest review. I have even more honesty to give you, but I don’t want to spoil the book for you.

I had a hard time getting into this one. The story seemed to take forever to finally pick up pace. There were too many technical terms that could have easily been taken out entirely or used less frequently.
Unfortunately, the characters added to my dislike for the book.

The first half to two-thirds of this book was over-written. Just too much detail about the woods...lumber...going into the woods....coming out of the woods. Finally towards the end, the story really caught on and we got to see the characters and their struggle between health and their livelihood. I think this would have been a much better book if it was cut down in size. Longer doesn't always mean it is better.