The Greatest Man in Cedar Hole

by Stephanie Doyon

Book Overview

Cedar Hole is the armpit of fictional Gilford County, a town full of apathetic underachievers trapped by a defunct railroad, distrust of the outside world, and their own lack of imagination. During... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0743271335
• ISBN13: 9780743271332
• Release Date: June 2005
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Length: 375 Pages
• Weight: 1.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 6.6" x 9.8"

Customer Reviews

NICE STORY, GOOD READ - I LIKED IT.

This is one of those books you will either enjoy, if you are of one mind set, or you won't if you are of another. I personally enjoyed this one and thought it was well done. Things are not always as they seem is the overall message sent by this one and I thought the author, who is a natural story teller, did a fine job in this area. Her character developement was good, her discription of small town America hit the nail on the head. While I certainly would not call this one a page turner, it did hold my interest and I did enjoy it. Do recommend this one.

You won't be disappointed and Highly recommended

My wife handed me this book after she finished reading this and declared that I must read it myself. I quickly read the back cover and figured I'd give it a shot. I have to say, I was very pleasently surprised at how good this was. I found myself not wanting to put it down. I felt drawn to each character and really enjoyed it. This book provided some fun conversation for my wife and I. I have recommended this novel to my friends, and those who have read it for themselves have come back with very positive reviews. I can honestly say that I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a well written and well developed story. Its characters are finely depicted, and I loved how I could identify someone I know to each character.

Completely enjoyable

This book is a jewel. It's never dull, and it's beautifully constructed. I've never read any novel like it. It certainly doesn't follow a formula. Wonderful characters you root for, others you want to kick in the pants. The author has created characters the reader really cares about.

A beautiful life story in a small town; unlike anything else on the bookselves today

The Greatest Man in Cedar Hole is unlike any other novel on the bookshelves today, a fact to be celebrated. Some elements remind me of Dunn's Geek Love (the sisters who make their brother fear for his life with their abuse and roughhousing), and others remind me of Irving's A Prayer for Owen Meany (the struggling young hero, the portrait of a small town, the epic nature of the story). Doyon has created a masterpiece with her portrait of the small town of Cedar Hole, its eccentric residents, and the struggles of two young men growing up there. The plot centers on the intertwined lives of two heroes of Cedar Hole-superciliously perfect Robert, who gives to his family and his community endlessly, and the working man's hero Spud/Francis, who is more human due to his imperfections. The book follows them from grade school through adulthood, complete with a loveable and slightly obsessive town librarian, a drinking club in which the members could only raise their glass with their left hands (or face a nickel fine), Spud's nine sisters who out-do him in masculine activities every time, and an extraordinary entrepreneurship opportunity presented to Spud and his family. Is Robert or Spud the Greatest Man in Cedar Hole? Doyon will take the reader on a terrific journey to determine the answer to that question.

Superbly-written and quietly rousing

"... in Cedar Hole, when a person rose above the lot, everyone else looked around and thought they were sinking. Balance had to be restored, and if fate didn't see to it, the citizens of Cedar Hole took it upon themselves to make sure that victory and defeat were served up in equal portions." Why on Earth would anyone want to go to Cedar Hole? That may sound like a curious question, but it took a while for the local railroad to find out that not many folks actually did. After several years of declining ridership, they decided to cut the route short, making fashionable Palmdale the new end of the line, one short stop before Cedar Hole and many miles beyond in prestige. Young Francis Pinkham spent a lifetime waiting for the train to return, watching the line with eager anticipation because, just as soon as it pulled in again, he planned to be on it. Meanwhile, he grew into a teenager, married, fathered a child, and generally contented himself making a living in this small town, waiting for the train to come back and take him places. One of Pinkham's schoolmates, Robert J. Cutler, was forever upstaging Francis --- and everyone else in town, for that matter. A young man with too much talent and an eye toward community service, Cutler never planned to leave Cedar Hole. After his father passed on, he promised his mother that he would take care of her, and he was a man of his word. Then, when she died, he still stayed on in Cedar Hole. Many wondered why. Robert was just too good for the likes of the Hole. Everyone thought so --- except, of course, Francis Pinkham. He sure didn't see it that way. Growing up in a family of nine malicious sisters --- who were almost more masculine than he --- Francis learned a lot about the unfairness of life, but even he would admit that it made him stronger. He took life in stride and made the best of what fate threw his way. Even if the rail company refused to bring the train back, Francis Pinkham was going places. Robert, on the other hand, was an only child, showered with every advantage his working class parents could afford. Without the daily terror that plagued Francis in the form of his cruel sisters, Robert could focus his energies on the future, and ways to make it better for everyone in town. And so he did. It is hard not to choose sides with these strongly dimensioned characters. They grow to greater-than-life size on the pages. One can feel Francis's chronic frustration and Robert's easy determination. One can see the set of Francis's clenched jaw, of Robert's disarming smile. While both Francis and Robert are good men deep down to the core, only one of them can be the Greatest Man in Cedar Hole. Find out which one it is in this superbly written and quietly rousing debut saga. --- Reviewed by Kate Ayers