Book Summary and Reviews of Hang the Moon by Jeannette Walls

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Cathryn Conroy

A Roller Coaster of a Book! Strap on Your Seat Belt Because This Is a Raucous Literary Ride
If Sallie Kincaid, the 19-year-old lead character in this roller coaster of a book by Jeannette Walls were real, we would be singing ballads written about her. What a character! What a book!

Taking place primarily in the early 1920s in the poor, rural Virginia area of East Appalachia where the scars of World War I are still being felt by those who served, this is the story of Sallie Kincaid—a Tomboy with a capital "T"—and her outsized, powerful, and wealthy father Henry Edward Kincaid, who is known to everyone (even his daughter) as the Duke. (In Sallie's eyes, the Duke "hung the moon and scattered the stars," hence the title of the book.) The Duke has led quite a checkered life with four wives—the first of whom he divorced and second of whom he murdered (and got away with it)—and three children.

Sallie is the middle child, the daughter of the murdered wife, but she is so much like the Duke that he loves and adores her. Still, she has a rough life, being banished from the household at age eight only to return at age 17. Even though he holds no elected office, the Duke absolutely controls Claiborne County, Virginia with his numerous and often shady business dealings and political connections. When it's Sallie's turn at the helm, she is faced with a deadly family feud between the Kincaids and the Bonds, as well as the new laws of prohibition that turn the county's prolific whiskey business, dominated by the Black citizens, into a dangerous bootlegging operation with Sallie in charge.

The magic of the novel is in Sallie's introspective thoughts and conflicts. As she expertly wields a Remington-22 rifle that she bought for $3 as a child and plots ways to strike the Bond family, she is also considering the moral and ethical implications of everything she and others do. All of this becomes quite complicated, considering the life she is leading.

Just a note: I never saw it while I was reading the novel, but in the acknowledgements, author Jeannette Walls says the story was loosely inspired by England's King Henry VIII—his life and his many wives. And yes! The connection is brilliant. The Duke's first name is even "Henry." Clearly, Sallie Kincaid is the double of Queen Elizabeth I, the daughter of the beheaded Anne Boleyn.

This book is a winner for two reasons: Sallie is one of the best book characters I have ever encountered, and the plot never lets up with surprise and tragic twists at every turn. Strap on your seat belt because this is a raucous literary ride!

Elaine

STRONG WOMAN IN MALE DOMINATED TIMES
Sallie Kincaid is a modern woman born before her time.
She thought her dad hung the moon, but finally discovered that he was flawed like all humans, perhaps more than others.
To me, it was like the story of the Hatfields and McCoys...two feuding families over land, bragging rights, murder, and unlawful moonshine...interspersed with true accounts of Walls's life.
And Sallie? She emerges from the pages as her father's daughter, strong and resilient with a mind of her own.
I enjoyed it very much as I do all of her other books.

Shetreadssoftly

historical fiction and family drama
Hang the Moon by Jeannette Walls is a very highly recommended historical fiction and family drama which follows a young woman in Virginia during Prohibition.

Sallie Kincaid is the daughter Duke Kincaid, a wealthy man who owns or runs most of Claiborne County, Virginia. At the Emporium general store he owes, the Duke also sells bootleg whiskey he has received in lieu of rent. Sallie is the daughter of his second wife, who is deceased. She adores her father and his bigger than life personality. His third wife, Jane has a son, Eddie. When she is eight-years-old an accident involving three-year-old Eddie results in, at the behest of Jane, the Duke banishing Sallie to go live with her Aunt Faye.

Nine years later, Jane has died and Sallie is immediately brought back into the family by Duke, ostensibly to teach Eddie. Now, however, Sallie understands more of the world full of secrets, conflicts, and scandals around her and her family. She is determined to never marry and make her own way into the family rental property and bootlegging empire, while navigating the conflicts. Duke quickly marries his fourth wife and life becomes much more complicated following this decision.

The writing is wonderful and the plot is compelling. I was fully engaged in this family drama and the many surprising turns and the surprising revelations within the narrative. There is a tangle of family intrigue, complications, questionable morals, and hidden secrets in Hang the Moon. Even when the many complexities seem to be over the top, the fact that the plot was inspired by the life of Elizabeth I of England, daughter of Henry VIII makes it even better. History buffs will be able to pick up on the similarities to Tudor England.

Sallie is a great fully realized, intelligent, and complex character. Walls portrays both her strengths and weaknesses. She can be fearless, reckless, stubborn, and outspoken, but she is also damaged. Due to the many characters, not all of them are as developed as Sallie, but they all still resemble real people with very different personalities and proclivities.
Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Scribner via NetGalley.

Elizabeth @Silver's Reviews

Elizabeth @Silver's Reviews - A good one
Duke Kincaid was someone you didn't want to cross. He always had to have his way.

Well...his second wife had him not getting his way and having him send away his daughter, Sallie, because his wife said she caused her son to have a terrible accident.

Sallie went to live with her Aunt for nine years…yes, nine years...he never allowed her to come back until his wife died because he needed her to take care of the child who had no mother.

It was an ok return, but not until Sallie asked to be part of the business did her father think she was good for something other than being a man's wife.

Then Eddie died, and things changed.

HANG THE MOON was well written as all of Ms. Wall’s books are.

You will love Sallie for her strength and how she grew as the story unfolded.

It got a bit slow at times, but the story line still held my interest with all its drama.

This book will be enjoyed by those who like books about prohibition, family, and Ms. Wall’s books. 4/5

This book was given to me by the publisher via NetGalley for an honest review.

jamie

very readable not her best
The story is interesting and book is readable but it is almost an exact replica of the Tudors and Henry the Eight. First wife very religious has a daughter Mary. Second wife named Ann is killed by her husband and has a daughter not the promised son. Third wife name Jane has a son Eddie that doesn't live long enough to inherit. Ann's daughter Sallie (not Elizabeth) ends up running the show. Daughter Mary also thinks she is pregnant and is sick with tumor. This is right out of the history books. The names should have been changed at least. Instead of the 1500 it is during prohibition. Good story but too much close to another historical family

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