This debut follows the budding romance of Gus and Monae and their family members through the changing times of Flint, Michigan. The stories of their families show the differences in the lives of black and white people in the area.

This book is well-written and really brings to life the different times and lives of Michigan. It is a complex story about the complex history of Flint.

I did struggle with the audiobook. It was hard to follow the different characters while listening to an audiobook. You really have to be paying attention as the chapters change to hear the date. Had I been reading the book, I feel I would have been able to follow along better. The narrator was brilliant, however, and I really enjoyed listening to her storytelling.

This is another favorite book for me. August (Gus) is from Flint, Michigan, but this part of his story begins when he is in his early twenties, waking from a heroin overdose in the Detroit restaurant where he works. He is out of a job and has to start his sobriety over. That means going home. I first "connected" with the city of Flint through Michael Moore's movie "Roger and Me," which is touched on in the book. Ronan follows a group of interconnected characters from various decades (the 1930s through 2022), all the while telling the story of Flint, It is a story that requires careful attention. Characters show up in different decades making reference to a grandmother we may already have met as a young mother or who we meet later as a middle aged woman. Making the connections and having "aha" moments is part of the charm of the book. Its characters are incredibly well written, complex, often with hard childhoods that helps explain their later failings. Ultimately, the other biggest story about Flint, the corrupt decision to change its water supply to the polluted Flint River, causing years of devastating health issues for its citizens that were addressed far too slowly plays a big role in Gus's life. This book is also about redemption being possible-- for a city and for human beings. Having heard an excellent audio version of this book, beautifully portrayed, I have requested the ebook because I want to read it and provide a more in depth review than I can, trying to remember which parts of the novel I want to highlight.

Chevy in the Hole encompasses decades of a region rich in history and overwhelmed by conflict, enviromental disaster, and tragedy. The more recent crisis, that being the Flint water issues, is merged with the past troubles as the author weaves a story from present to past. With multiple perspectives and time shifts, the author tries to bring the lineage of two families to life.

Between the time shifts and the perspectives, it was hard to keep everything straight. The author wanted to write a love letter to Flint, but really did not give anything but a bleak view into the history of the beleaguered city. The story was predominantly about the troubled August “Gus” Molloy, an addict trying to make something of his life. Monae, the young woman who became an important part of his life, factored into the story as well. As the author delved deep into both of their histories, going back many years into the time of Motown and worker strikes, the novel got so convoluted that it lost focus. I found it hard to forge a connection with any of the characters and stuggled to finish the novel, both in printed form and audio. With such a rich history from which to draw, the author did not do justice to the region.

The narrator of the audio version of the book, Janina Edwards, does a good job of bringing the characters to life. The presentation of the written words is well articulated, but the audio is hard to follow because of the multiple time shifts and perspective changes. I would be hesitant to recommend the audio version of Chevy in the Hole to other readers for this reason.

Disclaimer: I was given an Advanced Audio Copy of Chevy in the Hole by NetGalley and the publisher, Macmillan Audio. The decision to listen to and review this book was entirely my own.