I really enjoyed this novel by Amanda Coplin. It's the story of William Talmadge (known to everyone as just "Talmadge"), living at the turn of the 20th century in the Northwest US with his orchards of apples and apricots. He's a quiet man, living a quiet, lonely, life. Then one day two young girls, pregnant runaways, come into his orchard, and his life is changed forever.
Talmadge takes a liking to the girls - Jane and her sister Della - even feels a certain responsibility for them, so he begins to take care of them. And so a family of sorts is born, with all the heartbreaks and joys that go along with being part of a family.
Coplin's writing reminds me a bit of Hemingway's. The language is spare but extremely descriptive, and the characters have great depth and realism. And it's a heartbreaking and beautiful story that I just couldn't put down.
The Orchardist
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