At the Edge of the Orchard is a historical tale set in the mid-1800s that follows the journey of a botanist collecting seeds and seedlings in the American West to transport back to England. The story revolves around a mismatched couple, the Goodenoughs, as they struggle to make a living in the harsh environment of the Ohio swamps. Their son, Robert, eventually finds solace in nature and embarks on a journey to California, where he discovers a deep connection to trees. Tracy Chevalier weaves together multiple perspectives and timelines, blending historical facts with fictional characters to create an engaging and educational narrative.
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Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings
Content warnings include themes of familial discord, hardship, death, and some coarse language, reflective of the harsh realities of the setting.
From The Publisher:
"With impeccable research and flawless prose, Chevalier perfectly conjures the grandeur of the pristine Wild West . . . and the everyday adventurers-male and female-who were bold enough or foolish enough to be drawn to the unknown. She crafts for us an excellent experience."
-USA Today
From internationally bestselling author Tracy Chevalier, author of A Single Thread, comes a riveting drama of a pioneer family on the American frontier
1838: James and Sadie Goodenough have settled where their wagon got stuck - in the muddy, stagnant swamps of northwest Ohio. They and their five children work relentlessly to tame their patch of land, buying saplings from a local tree man known as John Appleseed so they can cultivate the fifty apple trees required to stake their claim on the property. But the orchard they plant sows the seeds of a long battle. James loves the apples, reminders of an easier life back in Connecticut; while Sadie prefers the applejack they make, an alcoholic refuge from brutal frontier life.
1853: Their youngest child Robert is wandering through Gold Rush California. Restless and haunted by the broken family he left behind, he has made his way alone across the country. In the redwood and giant sequoia groves he finds some solace, collecting seeds for a naturalist who sells plants from the new world to the gardeners of England. But you can run only so far, even in America, and when Robert's past makes an unexpected appearance he must decide whether to strike out again or stake his own claim to a home at last.
Chevalier tells a fierce, beautifully crafted story in At the Edge of the Orchard, her most graceful and richly imagined work yet.
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Tracy Chevalier goes to some dark, Faulkner-esque places in this book, even though it isn't set in the American south. The Goodenoughs move West to start a farm in Ohio (actually they end up there because their wagon gets stuck in the Black Swamp) and just have the worst goddamn time. That's the Faulkner part. Mother Sadie hates being there, hates herself for being a bad, drunk mother, hates her husband for his love of their apple orchard. Father James has no problem beating up his wife in their never-ending war over the apple trees, and is most happy when he's tending to them, grafting his precious Golden Pippins onto local trees sold by Johnny Appleseed himself.
Robert, the youngest son, runs away from home (due to events revealed later in the book) and heads west. Just west. Eventually he ends up in California, as far as he can go, and starts making a living collecting tree samples to be sent to England. Robert shares his father's love of trees, but refuses to talk or think about his traumatic past. He only wants to be alone in nature and drift from place to place, until his little sister Martha shows up and changes his plan.
Robert and Martha show that you can escape your past, you can become a better person than your environment provides for. And Molly, Robert's lover, was probably my favorite character in the book. A woman who always lands on her feet, Molly is looking for someone to settle down with. She's looking for the opportunity to finally have someone to rely on, even though she doesn't exactly want to settle down like the gentle Martha. Molly's relationship with Robert is fascinating, because she doesn't pin him down. She doesn't want to. She wants escape and adventure just like he does, but she knows working as a cook/prostitute in California mining towns will eventually destroy her, and Robert is her way out. She's a fascinating character.
What can you read after
At the Edge of the Orchard?
About the Author:
Tracy Chevalier is the New York Times bestselling author of nine previous novels, including Girl with a Pearl Earring, which has been translated into thirty-nine languages and made into an Oscar-nominated film. Born and raised in Washington, DC, she lives in…
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