The Gillespie County Fair: A Novel

by Marc Hess

In Marc Hess's new novel, The Gillespie County Fair, the oldest continuously running fair in Texas, which maintains the strong, traditionally rural roots of the German farming community around Fredericksburg in the Hill Country of Texas, serves as the backdrop for two intermarried families and a land development scheme that exposes the vicious underbelly of this pastoral community, leads to the demise of two pioneer families, and culminates the triumph of one hard-headed young girl.

The book delves into the turmoil of poverty in rural areas trying to adapt to a changing world. In a short period of time, the town of Fredericksburg, Texas morphed from a rock-rimmed farming community into the chic tourist destination that it is today. While many of the old German families prosper in this transition this is the story about a family that destroys itself.

• ISBN13: 9781626346048
• Publish Date: 30 May 2019
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Greenleaf Book Group LLC
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 240
• Language: English

Reviews

[Quirky Cat]

I received a copy of The Gillespie County Fair through BookishFirst in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The Gillespie County Fair is the latest novel by Marc Hess, and it's a totally unique read. Set in Texas, and revolving around the oldest fair, this novel is rich with culture and character development.

What do you do when you live in a tight knight community? It's hard to go about doing anything when everyone knows your past and exactly what you're up to. That goes doubly so when you're planning something big.

Over a short period of time, this town is about to see some major changes. Those changes will include two families imploding, and one girl finding her freedom. But it's all so much more than that. It always is.

Warnings: The Gillespie County Fair contains several intense themes. The most noteworthy one being the concept of self-injury. These scenes are not glossed over, so if this is something you find upsetting, you should probably give a pass on this book.

The Gillespie County Fair was an interesting novel. It is totally out of the norm for what I read, and that made for a refreshing change. That being said, I also wasn't as swept away by this novel as I would have liked.

Don't get me wrong, this is a novel with a lot of potential. I just personally couldn't get into it. While I love novels with multiple perspectives, I had trouble getting into any of their heads this time around, and that made it hard for me to be invested in what was going on.

I loved the core concept of The Gillespie County Fair. Destroying old and outdated customs in favor of having the ability to move forward. It's a fun and powerful theme, and one that I will never tire of. I just feel like it could have been pushed just a tiny bit more here, you know?

Honestly, I normally like to write longer reviews than this, but I'm struggling to come up with more to say. I don't want to sound too harsh though, I liked The Gillespie County Fair okay, and will be keeping an eye on Marc Hess' future works.

For more reviews check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks