What readers think of If the Creek Don't Rise, plus links to write your own review.

“If the creek don't rise," debut novel by Leah Weiss, is a treasure. Set in an environment of extremes-wretched poverty amidst the majesty of the NC mountains, its inhabitants scratch out a living in primitive 1970 Appalachia. The book is written in the first person & each character tells its own story, in the dialect of the time of this isolated mountain community. The richness of the writing and its descriptive prose is a joy to read. It brings to life the culture and nature of this remote corner of years gone by. Birdie Rocas (crone/mid-wife/witch) says some of the most memorable lines: "Two men, skinny as hickory sticks, pointed their rifles at us, ready to do us wrong. I won't the cleanest woman, but they was the dirtiest men I seen all year." I didn't want this book to end and look forward to the writer's next work. Can't recommend enough!

It's rare that a book grabs you from the first sentence; and yet, that is exactly what happened. The people, the environment, the fear, the hate, the anger, the struggles...all of this made for a book that a person could not wait to keep reading. And then the ending...did NOT see that coming. I love this book and encourage anyone who loves a good tale to pick this one up.

Wow! this novel grabbed me quickly. I liked how the author introduced/got me into the heads of several folks in the town of Baines Creek. Great technique! At times I laughed and then cried while reading the book.

Throughout the novel I was rooting for the sweet but determined Sadie Blue. Leah Weiss does a great job as a first time novelist. Encore!

Tucked in to the Appalachian Mountains, the people of Baines Creek live a hard luck, hard scrabble life. Tied together by tradition, misfortune, and a distrust of outsiders they make their way by whatever means necessary.
A product of that environment, without formal education, a family support system and self-esteem, Sadie Blue does what many girls in her situation are prone to. Sadie falls for the first smooth talking man that looks her way and jumps from a bad situation to a horrible one.
An outsider, with a story of her own to tell, befriends Sadie and gives her the strength to do what needs to be done. With help with some of the creek’s residents, some strange and some downright otherworldly Sadie begins to climb out of the situation she’s found herself in.
The area and its inhabitants and so well written and deeply explored that you can almost visualize them. I could not put this book down and its inhabitants have stayed with me in the days afterward.