American Salvage

American Salvage is rich with local color and peopled with rural characters who love and hate extravagantly. They know how to fix cars and washing machines, how to shoot and clean game, and how to cook up methamphetamine, but they have not figured out how to prosper in the twenty-first century. Through the complex inner lives of working-class characters, Bonnie Jo Campbell illustrates the desperation of post-industrial America, where wildlife, jobs, and whole ways of life go extinct and the people have no choice but to live off what is left behind. (from: back cover of book)

I very much enjoyed this collection of short stories written by Bonnie Jo Campbell. After reading the first selection I was afraid that I would find the stories depressing; however, I soon found myself immersed in the complicated yet simple lives of the colorful characters and became less judgmental. My favorite selections were "The Yard Man", "Family Reunion", and "Storm Warning".

I specifically chose to read this book because it was written by a local author. I would recommend American Salvage by Bonnie Jo Campbell to others who enjoy reading short stories.