Those Who Favor Fire: A Novel - Hardcover

Wolk, Lauren

3.91

160 ratings by Goodreads

9780679448495: Those Who Favor Fire: A Novel

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0679448497 ISBN 13: 9780679448495

Publisher: Random House, 1999

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People feel at home in Belle Haven, and in many ways it is like any other small town, with a caf� where regulars come for the fresh cinnamon rolls and to talk about the weather, or one another, often staying all day.  It's a town with the usual collection of quirky characters--the people everyone knows who, by staying in one place long enough, have become part of its landscape. But what sets Belle Haven apart is its especially strong sense of community, which is both strengthened and tested by the uncontrollable mine fire that burns below the town.  Sometimes it breaks through the earth's surface to swallow somebody's garden or a garbage can, even a beloved pet, or to threaten a house.

Those Who Favor Fire is the love story of Rachel Hearn, who has lived in Belle Haven all her life, and the man everyone calls Just Joe, who has arrived only recently--and the story of their love for the town that has brought them together. But as the fire intensi-
fies, endangering Belle Haven and its people, it also threatens what Joe and Rachel have found together. Though some reluctantly consider relocating, Rachel refuses to leave the only place she's ever called home, the place that holds her richest memories. But Joe knows the danger of becoming too firmly rooted in a place. Ultimately, Rachel and Joe must decide whether to abandon their beloved town.

In her wonderful debut novel, Lauren Wolk has created a town every bit as real as the Mitford of Jan Karon's novels and populated it with characters as quirky, lively, and endearing as Fannie Flagg's.

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From the Publisher:

Additional reviews:

Wolk writes clean, well-crafted prose, and she paints an appealing picture of life in a small, close-knit community. (The Christian Science Monitor, Feb. 4, 1999)

...a wonderfully quirky love story with a brisk, good-humored style....Through it all, Wolk has a fine knack for the development of character, the creation of a very real sense of place, the labyrinthine trust and betrayals of relationships. This is a fine first novel, beautifully and engagingly written, filled with surprise twists and a love of the human heart that recognizes both death and possibility. It honestly delights and keeps those dark empty spaces clear in its vision, while in pursuit of the elusive substance of life itself. (The Providence Journal, Feb. 14, 1999)

The strength of "Those Who Favor Fire" lies in the author's evocative, skillful use of detail about this fictional town and its people. (The San Diego Union-Tribune, Feb. 21, 1999)

Lauren Wolk's first novel has a fascinating concept, well-drawn characters and an often gripping storyline. (The Chicago Tribune, March 29, 1999)

The beauty of this book is...in the setting--the physical details of life in a small town, the quirky inhabitants, and the personal relationships that are engendered. (Bookman News, Feb. 8, 1999)

I found this book thoroughly enjoyable as well as easy to read. It captured my attention and held it the entire way. It will bring back memories of a blossoming love and life in a small town. (Paula King, The Pilot (N.C.), Feb. 28, 1999)

From the Back Cover:

Advance praise for Those Who Favor Fire:

"In Lauren Wolk's capable hands, the story of a close-knit community struggling to coexist with an underground inferno becomes a meditation on trust and betrayal, loyalty and freedom, and the necessary balance between loving and letting go. This novel is by turns heartwarming and heartbreaking, but beautifully written throughout. A stunning debut."--Aimee Liu, author of Cloud Mountain

"Add all three of my names to a burgeoning list of fans: those who favor Lauren Wolk. Cozy as a country kitchen, this novel is, in part, a spice rack of a town remembered. Again I am home, inhaling bogs, barns, and Angela's muffins."--Robert Newton Peck, author of A Day No Pigs Would Die

"First-time novelist Wolk has conceived an engrossing plot and peopled it with appealing characters. [R]eminiscent of the best of Shirley Jackson."--Publishers Weekly

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