I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC.

I loved the themes and ideas behind this book, but I didn't really enjoy the execution. The writing was alright. Usually I will enjoy a book that discusses these important discussions, but the author was really wanting to hit the reader over the head with it. Because of this, the book felt very repetitive. The characters also didn't feel very fleshed out either. I did enjoy the narrator and thought the narrator did a good job with book.

The last of a long line of farmers, our protagonist seeks to end the ongoing nightmare that seems to plague him and his farm. His family, his health, his land, all seem to be deteriorating. His exit plan does not go as imagined. A doctor of a similar age originally from the community starts seeing him as he recovers. Already fixated on getting to the root of the areas problems, this doctor sees the path to potential answers in his new patient's case.

"Ordinary Soil" is an exploration in history, science, traditions, grief, generational trauma on peoples and earth, and the things that haunt us in all senses.

Let me be clear. The introduction to earth science, the melding of folk knowledge and empirical, and the reminder of colonization's insidious nature are incredibly important. The song recordings in the audiobook were enjoyable. I would be interested in the author's nonfiction, speeches, and other musical performances. These are the merits that earn the rating. Not the story itself, unfortunately.

Appreciating an essay or lecture is different than liking a book. Reading doesn't have to be enjoyable. The best experiences challenge a reader. The process does have to transcend the learning process in the telling to be a successful novel. In this,"Ordinary Soil" fell short.

By no means is combining genres effectively east. I believe this is the core of what made the book so disjointed. If "Ordinary Soil" was supposed to be on the historical fiction side, we were never given enough of the other lives to really connect with the family outside of being told their relationship to their land. The element of character voice doesn't help. Child can and does effect how people respond and react later in life. It doesn't always clone you into a previous person or behavior set. The protagonist, his father, and the doctor's father all sounded the same. The only aspect I could pick up was rage with a side dish of regret.

Then is the attempted spin question is this what's happening mystical or psychological. Any guess work is shelved by the mother's plight being blatantly obvious. Something made more frustrating by a last ditch effort to contradict it. It turned character development into something sentimental but ultimately cheated the wife of her own journey.

I have no doubt that Woodard respects that land and traditional practices. Still, I confess that using the spiritual element of the originating patriarch as the fuel of horror didn't settle well. Some of the best horror and thriller fiction I've read lately stem from similar stories about indigenous trauma as written by community members. Something about this felt like it was being used as a tool.

Yes, a big theme of the book is that indigenous farming practices also have a scientific base. Having better ways embraced over current farming practices was a nice start. A stronger reinforcement would be something as simple as a side note in the epilogue about the brothers seeking advice from a local indigenous group on cultural matters. Otherwise, why include the ancestor's grief if their connection to him, of wanting to bring back what Aki's son abandoned, wasn't supposed to be the backbone?

Other small irritants added up. Integrating music or other embellishments is always hit and miss. Certain sections left the impression that the song wasn't reinforcing a scene but that the scene was written to highlight the song. A personal relationship for the doctor as he starts opening up about his past honestly adds very little to the plot. If anything it invades his thoughts and topples the pacing of the second half. It would have been more effective if information was held back and a mystery element maintained instead of becoming unnecessarily repetitive when said across timelines. It was a very wobbly reading experience.

I completely endorse any attempt to make important messages reach audiences who may be deaf to them. Unfortunately this book felt more like a sermon than a compelling tale with those vital features as the undercurrent. I wish I had liked this more.

Reactionary Rating: 2.5

I always know it's a good audiobook when it comes to the end and I immediately think: I want to read the book now!

Story:
The story of Ordinary Soil is multilayered.
There's human interaction and connection, histories,trial and tribulations.
It portrays hard work and the life of farming through the generations, focusing on societies growing demands that put strain on an already strained industry. The soil is dying.

Not only is the story thought provoking but there's also a ghost story that runs through it too. An entity that is trying to warn of mistakes made and the need to rethink "progress".

Narration and Production
I absolutely loved the narration - my attention was captivated and I thought that the added songs /musical details was a wonderful addition to the characters thoughts and feelings.
At the end of the main story there were some very thoughtful reflections discussed and I thoroughly enjoyed this aspect to the audiobook.

I'm very grateful to the author, narrators, publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity listen and review Ordinary Soil. It was an absolute pleasure.

Connection to family through the land as well as the poisioning the loss of traditions. This book is about Jake and his wife, who live on a large family farm of about five generations. Jake's great, great grandfather was a Native American and his spirit haunts Jake, his father and his brother with terrifying visions. Jake has variety of health problems, all of which are seen regularly by the local physician, Mark. Jake and his wife have recently lost their young daughter to leukemia. Jakes' burdens have become too overwhelming and the book opens with his attempted suicide. Jake then becomes Mark's patient, and the two develop a friendship, which is truly a lifeline to Jake. Jake's wife, it turns out, has not been able to accept their daughter's death, still pretends that she is alive and near her most of the time. Jake's parents are both ill, his father with Parkinson's disease and his mother with Alzheimer's. Mark launches research on the overwhelming cases of disease he is presented with in this rural area and certain connections start to become clear. Farmers have unwittingly been spewing poison onto their crops and soil with the chemical pesticides that manufacturers have been pushing on them for decades with (unfounded) assurances of safety. This is a very heavy and thought-provoking read with an important message. There is a lot going on here and it all came together. Thanks to Netgalley, the author and publisher for the opportunity.

I did struggle understanding what is happening with the characters in this story and I am so glad I persevered. It was informative and interesting kind of read.
Based on a real experience about farming and the effects of using pesticides for ages that the soil died, to the effect that the character that was tending the soil is suffering from illness.

The production and narrators did an amazing work narrating the story.

Thank you NetGalley and to Greenleaf Audiobooks for the ARC.

This story is really interesting. Not only does it tackle big issues in farming and health, but also tell a story of a family who have farmed land over multiple generations. I particularly liked the early part of the book where we met the earliest generations. I struggled at time with the last few chapters but this was more to the recording than the tale.

The audiobook didn't do the content justice as it was hard to follow at times. The chapters are extremely long and many are over a hour long. This mean its harder to pause or to rewind if you missed anything. It being more broken up or having chapter changes acknowledged might help with this. I did enjoy the moments with the music.

This beautiful audiobook carried me from the Oklahoma Panhandle into the depths of intergenerational pain, land abuse, and hope. The narration was perfect.
If you appreciate character-driven literary fiction with Indigenous roots, ecological urgency, and emotional depth, this audiobook is a stirring, deep experience—painful, necessary, and hopeful.

Ordinary Soil taught me new things about toxins in our food system and the deeper connections between agriculture and health. The story blends fiction and real-life inspiration in a way that makes you think about the land we live on and the systems we take for granted.

The audiobook was a mixed experience. While the content was meaningful, the audio production made it hard to follow at times. There wasn’t much variation between the different voices, so conversations were sometimes confusing when listening while driving. Especially early on. New chapters weren’t clearly announced, which made it tricky to pause and return or navigate back and forth. Because of these issues, I think this story might work even better as a movie —something that could help clarify the shifts in perspective and tone.

That said, I’m really glad I listened. The themes are timely.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an advance copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this eARC in audiobook format.

Ordinary Soil by Alex Woodard, narrated by Scott Brick and George Newbern

Alex Woodard’s Ordinary Soil is a lyrical excavation of trauma, legacy, and the redemptive power of land. Set in the American heartland, the novel follows Jake, a young farmer haunted by addiction, grief, and a suicide attempt beneath a rotting burial elm. What he unearths—both literally and metaphorically—is a buried ancestral history that pulses with pain, resilience, and a quiet, aching hope.

This is not a story that rushes. It unfolds like a field in winter—still on the surface, but teeming with unseen life beneath. Woodard weaves together multiple timelines and perspectives, including a Choctaw boy resisting cultural erasure, a grieving mother, and a mysterious figure who may be more spirit than man. The result is a narrative that feels both intimate and mythic, grounded in soil yet reaching toward something sacred.

Scott Brick and George Newbern split narration duties with grace and gravitas. Brick brings a weathered solemnity to the prose, his voice echoing the weight of generational wounds. Newbern, in contrast, offers a gentler cadence, lending warmth and clarity to the novel’s more introspective passages. Together, they create a sonic landscape as rich and layered as the story itself.

What makes Ordinary Soil extraordinary is its refusal to separate the personal from the ecological. Addiction, abuse, and abandonment are not just human afflictions—they’re mirrored in the land, in the poisoned fields and forgotten roots. And yet, Woodard doesn’t leave us in despair. There’s a secret buried in that soil, one that suggests healing is possible—not just for Jake, but for all of us.

For listeners who crave literary fiction with spiritual depth and environmental resonance, Ordinary Soil is a haunting, hopeful journey. It reminds us that sometimes, to move forward, we must first dig deep.

A young farmer is troubled and keeps seeing an ancestor who needs him to see the error of their ways. Land has been over-farmed, over fed and over weeded but is there any health left in it?

Very well written and well narrated novel (I listened to the audiobook). Enjoyed the characters in this novel that’s shows how over time we have moved away from good land management to the desperate need to produce more, no matter the cost. A lesson here for us all to learn.

A beautiful allegory on the importance of regenerative agriculture/permaculture and Indigenous methods that aren’t damaging to our soil. As someone taking a permaculture diploma stories like this are so important, and it was a pleasure to listen to.

If you are against big pharma, pollution, pesticides, and unproper crop rotation practices, and enjoy reading stories in fictional format about such things, this book is for you. The characters are angry because their lives have been ruined by environmental issues and industrialization. Plus there is a scary Indian's ghost trying to warn the characters of the dangers of the chemicals used in farming as well as several "plugs" of a band that teach the characters life lessons through their music.
This book felt like an infomercial that would air on a one-sided political news station. ...but with a ghost. ...and meth.
I'm not against the message of this book, but it was not entertaining. If you were somehow unaware of the myriad of environmental issues addressed, I can see how this book could hook you. But these issues have been highly publicized over the past 3 decades.

A quiet, powerful story about grief, healing, and the deep connection between land and identity. Woodard’s writing is lyrical and heartfelt, with characters that feel honest and lived-in. Thoughtful, emotional, and beautifully rooted in place.