The Marrowbone Marble Company

Did we ever, down on our knees in the long-ago dust, with thumb to crystal taw, imagine our rainbow-hued marbles as a product of Utopia? Naw. Our minds were on "Winner Take All!" It would be left to the brilliance of somebody like Glenn Taylor (of which there may be no other) to build an enthralling morality tale, swirling with character, incident and color, on a dimestore toy few electonics-addicted modern kids would likely know, or covet. But it was marbles, made of scrap glass in a rickety old furnace, that paid for the autonomy of the civil, deeply decent community of Marrowbone, in the rough-cut hills of West Virginia. Utopian it was, under the smoke of its ceaseless industry, in a time of national upheaval -- the 1960s, age of peace-marching hippies and social atrocities, a crippling war in Vietnam and the all-out battle for human rights, in America. Taylor's Marrowbone is a beautifully-described microcosm of Appalachian attitudes and characters, sometimes dubiously abetted by friends from the side of Chicago where violin cases did not mean Barn Dance Tonight. It is the realm of the Bonecutter twins, Wimpy and Dimple, infinitely wise, unwashed old men who are eerily in tune with the earth, and a welcome comic relief. It is white people and black people living side by side, working for survival in mutual respect -- in a time when such arrangements could incur wrath and violence from bystanders, and scant protection by The Law. And, the makers of The Law, and enforcers thereof, included an element of vile crooks, mashers, bullies and oppressors sorrier than excrement. Yeah, not a lot has changed. Taylor knows, and draws so well, the facets of Appalachian human nature that take just so much pushing around, before insult begets incendiary response. Marrowbone founder Loyal Ledford, soul-scarred veteran of World War II, personifies these qualities, trying to keep peace for the welfare of his family and neighbors. Pacifist village preacher Don Staples --while he lives -- keeps a scriptural rein on Ledford, while some of us nearer Ledford's native urges are breathing harder and turning redder, under such restraint. Well, suffice it to say that beloved Preacher Staples is a fragile old man whose time does sadly come, on the same day his role-model Martin Luther King is murdered. It is for each of us who might have debated Staples to wonder what Jesus WOULD have done, confronted by the suited scum's assault on Ledford's young daughter, and the near-murder of his innocent, autistic son. Were the money-changers Jesus thrashed out of the temple more heinous than rapists and child-maimers? The Marrowbone Marble Co. is a marvelous book for people who love to ponder justice, who care for history, and above all, for us who just love a fascinating story, exquisitely told. Yes, there are soft spots, like in a fine pound cake that could have stood another 10 minutes in the oven. But nothing is ruined, and the few becalmed moments only make the final

In 1941 in Huntington, West Virginia, eighteen year old orphan Loyal Ledford works as a furnace tender at the Mann Glass Company factory while also attending college. He likes his boss' daughter Rachel and persuades her to go out with him. When the war breaks out, Loyal joins the Marine Corps. After major combat tours, he comes home to a hero's welcome. He marries Rachel, they have two kids and he returns to the glass manufacturing factory. However, he suffers from the trauma of battle until he meets his cousins, the Bonecutter brothers. They form a partnership, The Marrowbone Marble Company and a company village that welcomes all races and proves successful over the couple of decades until the civil rights movement marches through the area threatening his business, his village and his family. This super historical epic returns to the land of The Ballad of Trenchmouth Taggart as The Marrowbone Marble Company focuses on a man who is ahead of his time re race relations only to be threatened by those trying to catch up. After serving in some of the Pacific's more harrowing battles, Ledford suffers from PTSD until he meets his relatives and their land, which turns him into a visionary. Readers who relish a profound historical tale will appreciate the life and times of the battle fatigued dreamer in the Mountaineer State as he keeps the insightful story line mostly focused although some meandering in the foothills occurs. Harriet Klausner

Riveting! I couldn't put it down until it was done! The book was like a perfectly played game of chess with many strategies happening all at once but simultaneously seamless. Other friends have read it and it reads like an old American classic. This author tells as story that flows like a river in the beautiful mountains of West Virginia. I would give this 10 stars if they had it but I will give it 5+. If I can suggest a great present for friends, family or just a great summer or great vacation read - THIS IS IT!!! Buy this now. This should be a part of Oprah's book club. Enough said....you must see, read and love it for yourself.

The title of my review says it all. "The Marrowbone Marble Company" is a work that will find a place in the canon of great American literature. Without question. Its scope is incredible, running from the hells of Guadalcanal to west-side Chicago horsetracks to the Appalachian foothills; through a nation at war with the world during WWII to its own internal war over segregation; down to interpersonal struggles (some tragic) between family, friends and neighbors that are immediately familiar. Taylor weaves the story of the idealistic Marrowbone Cut families and their friends and enemies in the surrounding West Virginia environs through world-changing events beautifully with a true story-teller's grace. The attention to detail--both historical, emotional and technical (the art of glass marble production is fascinating)--is staggering. While a very serious tale, "Marrowbone" is funny to boot. This makes the work all the stronger. A character's quick, cutting retort or observation can be riotous, while also possessing a deeper meaning that cuts straight to the truth--much like real life. It's quite brilliant. Taylor's ear for the spoken word can be thanked for this. He writes dialogue like no other (those who have read his first book, "The Ballad of Trenchmouth Taggart", can attest to this). Simply put: This is one incredible book. A new American classic. Absolutely.

We live now, as the Chinese proverb says, in "interesting times." I read The Marrowbone Marble Company exhilarated by a singular and powerful idea: that in such times of extremity, the engine of change is still driven by people who are willing to shed hubris, temptation, and bias for what they know to be the right thing, a conviction that can never be achieved without critical mass. It's one of the many invaluable arguments Glenn Taylor makes in his sophomore novel. The setting is a symbiotic crossroads at one of the twentieth century's most dramatic historical moments; the prose is simple, straightforward, but never uninspired; and Taylor's characters are unforgettable. Read this novel and love it.