Official Review: Out of the Gulch Onto the Mountain Top

[Elle Howard]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Out of the Gulch Onto the Mountain Top" by Fred Civish.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Out of the Gulch, Onto the Mountain Top by Frederic Marsh Civish, Jr is an autobiography written in first person point of view. Frederic was born to a Utah coal mining family in 1931. It was never questioned that he would one day join the coal mines. Frederic had other dreams and aspirations. Out of the Gulch, Onto the Mountain Top is a detailed look back on Frederic’s life as he pursues those dreams.

The book focuses on events in Frederic’s life, but the majority of the discussion is about his careers. Frederic is highly educated and innovative. His life story has been about hard work and perseverance. He wants more for his family than a life of coal mining. However, all the attempts he makes to get a higher education and a middle-class life seem to fail. He is always left struggling to make ends meet. He has held many interesting jobs which he discusses in great detail: coal miner, a U.S. Navy sailor during the Korean War, substitute teacher, writer, card mechanic at a casino, airport passenger assistant. He has also tried many get rich (or get the bills paid) schemes. Sadly, all his attempts end in failure.

He married his first wife Jane in 1950. The marriage lasted almost twenty years and they had six children. The marriage survived his time in the Navy and his frequent absences while he pursued his many careers. The marriage would eventually fail when he became ex-communicated from the Mormon church. He states that his own personal beliefs versus church policies eventually led to his leaving the church. Jane, a devout Mormon, could not accept his decision and ended the marriage.

The author has lived through many historical events of the 20th century. What makes this book unique is how he discusses this history. He presents it from the perspective of how it impacted whatever was happening in his life at the time. The energy and details in these recollections can only be conveyed by a person that has experienced the event directly. For example, you can find many informative books about Pearl Harbor but you will learn a lot more if you sit down and discuss Pearl Harbor with a person that lived through it. That is what I liked most about this book. It is written as if the author is having a discussion directly with you.

If I had a negative comment about this book it would be that the author has a tendency to insert random recollections. This interrupts the flow of the writing and can be confusing at times. I was conflicted as to whether this adds to the charm of the book or if it was a distraction.

Overall, I enjoyed reading this book and would recommend it to others. Readers that enjoy historical novels and non-fiction would like this book. I unfortunately have to rate this book a 3 out of 4. There are formatting, punctuation and grammar errors which required me to lower the score.

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Out of the Gulch Onto the Mountain Top
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Like The Dizzy Diva's review? Post a comment saying so!

[Pablo994]

The storyline wasn’t able to grab my attention. Not sure what all the hype is on this book. The ratings don’t match up to what I read. Disappointed!
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[kandscreeley]

It's too bad about the grammatical errors. Still those who enjoy this time in history would probably like this one. For me, I think I'll skip it. It isn't really my genre. Thanks for the information, though.

[Kat Berg]

I am only a sometimes reader of this genre, and it isn't my favorite, so add into that grammatical errors and it just is a no go for me. Thanks for the review.

[readerwhowrites]

Thank you for your review. If I decide to read it I think I'll be most interested in his experiences during the Korean war.

[Chelsy Scherba]

Good observations about this book. I enjoyed reading your review! I like that you pointed out the destracting random memories to the author. Maybe the book can be tightened up a bit.