The events
in this novel take place in the course of one day in 1943 in Louisiana. Eighteen-year-old Willie Jones, a black man,
has been found guilty of raping a white girl, Grace Sutcliffe, and awaits his
execution at midnight. Willie had a
romantic relationship with Grace but her father discovered them together and
had Willie charged with raping his daughter.
The book is narrated from the perspective of various characters: Willie; Frank, Willie’s father; Father
Hannigan, the local priest; Lane, a prison trusty helping deliver the electric
chair for the execution; Ora and Dale, owners of a local gas station; Polly,
the district attorney; and Nell and Gabe, Polly’s wife and son.
Though nine
characters receive attention, each emerges as a distinct, complex individual
with hopes and fears. Polly, for
example, is responsible for successfully prosecuting Willie but he is not to be
seen as a villain; he hopes for an eleventh-hour reprieve and we learn that he
had little choice but to ask for the death penalty. And of course, there’s the fact that a guilty
verdict is a foregone conclusion: “’a
chipmunk could have had that boy convicted.
It was his word against a white man’s.’”
It is Willie’s skin colour that makes him guilty; Nell points out the
injustice: “’what white man would ever
be put to death for rape?’”
The story left
me emotionally drained. I wept for Frank
whose story is that of a father’s grief.
He is determined to deliver a tombstone for his son and to see Willie
one last time before his execution, but obstacles keep arising which threaten
him as well as his ability to achieve either goal. I was angry with Dale for his attitude but
also sympathized when I learned the secret he fears to share with Ora. I cheered for Ora as she sets out to help and
cried for her as well, knowing how her life would soon be shattered too.
The author
is white and she focuses on the perspective of whites. There are “’goddamn redneck ignorant pieces
of trash’” but there are whites who are conflicted and sympathetic to Willie’s
plight. Unfortunately, even though these
latter whites may try to help Willie in small ways, ultimately, they end up
failing him. The dangers of challenging the
status quo in the American South of the 1940s are made very clear.
The prose
is lyrical but controlled. There is no
melodrama or sensationalism and that works to make the novel even more
powerful. Its examination of racism and
the (in)justice system occurs within the Jim Crow South but, sadly, much of
what it reveals is as true today as it was 75 years ago.
I highly
recommend this thought-provoking book, though readers should be forewarned that it
is overwhelmingly sad. If you liked To Kill a Mockingbird, you will like
this novel as well.
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