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The Eulogist
The Eulogist: A Novel | Ms. Terry Gamble
10 posts | 7 read | 1 reading | 21 to read
From the author of The Water Dancers and Good Family, an exquisitely crafted novel, set in Ohio in the decades leading to the Civil War, that illuminates the immigrant experience, the injustice of slavery, and the debts human beings owe to one another, witnessed through the endeavors of one Irish-American family. Cheated out of their family estate in Northern Ireland after the Napoleonic Wars, the Givens family arrives in America in 1819. But in coming to this new land, they have lost nearly everything. Making their way west they settle in Cincinnati, a burgeoning town on the banks of the mighty Ohio River whose rise, like the Givenses own, will be fashioned by the colliding forces of Jacksonian populism, religious evangelism, industrial capitalism, and the struggle for emancipation. After losing their mother in childbirth and their father to a riverboat headed for New Orleans, James, Olivia, and Erasmus Givens must fend for themselves. Ambitious James eventually marries into a prosperous family, builds a successful business, and rises in Cincinnati society. Taken by the spirit and wanderlust, Erasmus becomes an itinerant preacher, finding passion and heartbreak as he seeks God. Independent-minded Olivia, seemingly destined for spinsterhood, enters into a surprising partnership and marriage with Silas Orpheus, a local doctor who spurns social mores. When her husband suddenly dies from an infection, Olivia travels to his family home in Kentucky, where she meets his estranged brother and encounters the horrors of slavery firsthand. After abetting the escape of one slave, Olivia is forced to confront the status of a young woman named Tilly, another slave owned by Olivias brother-in-law. When her attempt to help Tilly ends in disaster, Olivia tracks down Erasmus, who has begun smuggling runaways across the riverthe borderline between freedom and slavery. As the years pass, this family of immigrants initially indifferent to slavery will actively work for its endperforming courageous, often dangerous, occasionally foolhardy acts of moral rectitude that will reverberate through their lives for generations to come.
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jimfields3
The Eulogist | Terry Gamble
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Pickpick

As a native Cincinnatian I appreciated a novel set in our city‘s early years. As a descendant of abolitionists I appreciate a story that helps me imagine what I would have done had I been there.

The book covers about 30 years, and the skips in time seem a little disjointed and uneven. But overall a solid character-driven story. June #bookspin done!

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 2y
15 likes1 comment
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jimfields3
The Eulogist | Terry Gamble
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June‘s #BookSpin and #DoubleSpin selections as chosen by @TheAromaofBooks

These are both books that have been low on my TBR pile, so I‘m looking forward to marking them off.

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 2y
16 likes1 comment
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Jemmygem
The Eulogist | Terry Gamble
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Pickpick

What a interesting read. The characters are so well written and connected you hold your breath waiting to see what happens next. @michellelav you are going to love it.

michellelav So excited to read it! Atm I'm reading 4y
Jemmygem Great 📖 enjoy 4y
58 likes1 stack add2 comments
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Jemmygem
The Eulogist | Terry Gamble
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Looking forward to starting this.

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megnews
The Eulogist | Terry Gamble
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Pickpick

Irish immigrants ✅
Underground Railroad ✅
Set in my home state of Ohio ✅
This work of historical fiction held many of my favorite topics. An immigrant Irish family, facing challenges & making their way in Cincinnati, unwittingly falls into abetting runaways on the Underground Railroad.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

48 likes3 stack adds
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Susanita
The Eulogist | Terry Gamble
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I still have to finish two more books by the end of the year, but in the meantime I‘m going to call the tagged book my #FavoriteDecemberRead because I think it needs some more love from Litsy. Here are the rest.
-Force of Nature (Harper) 🇦🇺
-Christmas Cake Murder (Fluke) 👎🏻
-Ellen‘s Lion (Johnson) 🦁
-Winter at the Door (Graves) 🌲
#hollyjollyreading
-

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks I‘ve never heard of it!! I‘ll have to look it up!! 5y
OriginalCyn620 👍🏻📚😊 5y
28 likes2 comments
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Susanita
The Eulogist | Terry Gamble
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Life in pre-Civil War Cincinnati is not very #jolly for Olivia Givens and her family, but it‘s not boring either! After immigrating from Belfast, she deals with the loss of her parents, her brothers‘ quirky personalities, provincial society‘s expectations, the shifting sands of abolition and slavery...and more! Though I‘m tiring a bit of the elderly-woman-looks-back-on-her-life trope, I enjoyed this book. Olivia is great! #hollyjollyreading

ljuliel I just saw this at the library today but didn‘t pick it up. Maybe next time ! 5y
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks 📚🙌🏻 5y
OriginalCyn620 👍🏻📚 5y
28 likes2 stack adds3 comments
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intothehallofbooks
The Eulogist: A Novel | Ms. Terry Gamble
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Pickpick

Ohio Valley, 1818-1890: An Irish immigrant family navigates slavery and abolition, with varied opinions on these things. The siblings take different paths in life but remain loyal to one another throughout. I LOVED IT, especially sister Olivia who tells the story. She is progressive and opinionated, and this sets the course for her life and gets her in a little trouble with society. Religion, parenthood, and marriage are also explored. SO GOOD!!

WilliamMorrowBooks Ah so glad for your review! 6y
Susanita This sounds very interesting! Also love the afghan. 6y
47 likes1 stack add2 comments
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ErickaS_Flyleafunfurled
The Eulogist: A Novel | Ms. Terry Gamble
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Pickpick

Superb historical fiction. Follows 3 Irish immigrant siblings in America throughout most of the 19th century - excellent story encompassing aboltionism, entrepreneurial ideas, and the inchoate idea of the independence of women. Recommended. Thanks, WilliamMorrow, for the advance copy!

merelybookish Nice review! 6y
ErickaS_Flyleafunfurled @merelybookish Thanks! Really enjoyed the book. 👍 6y
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ErickaS_Flyleafunfurled
The Eulogist: A Novel | Ms. Terry Gamble
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Book mail!! Had to start this right away! Three siblings from Ireland making their way in early 19th century America. Only 14 pages in and I‘m immersed in it.

44 likes5 stack adds