An Oprah's Book Club Selection An unflinching tale of turn-of-the-century Appalachian life, Gap Creek chronicles the challenging first year in the marriage of Julie Harmon and Hank Richards. After losing both her father and brother before turning 17, Julie faces fire, flood, grifters, sickness, and starvation with grim determination and remarkable stamina. By capturing the earthy details of rural life, including raw, riveting accounts of everything from hog slaughtering to childbirth, Robert Morgan weaves the human and the heroic that coexist in every individual.