The Runaway

by Terry Kay

The Runaway is the novel Terry Kay has wanted to write his entire career: the story of the earliest beginnings of desegregation in the South. Set in the 1940s and using as a springboard the relationship of two boys - one black and the other white - who have been mysteriously ordained at birth to spark the flames of change, The Runaway examines the joys, sorrows, conflicts, and racial disharmony of their historically biased environment. Tom and Son Jesus spend their days daydreaming, fishing, and trying to escape work. But their fun abruptly comes to a halt when they discover a bone during a fanciful runaway. The bone turns out to be part of the skeletal remains of Son Jesus' long-missing father, and leads to an investigation by Sheriff Frank Rucker, a World War II hero, that unmasks the racially motivated killer known only as Pegleg. The sheriff's findings divide the people of Overton County, forcing a surprising conclusion - or beginning - of justice.

Genres: Fiction, Historical, Adult, Mystery

Audio Cassette

First published October 1, 1997

About the author

TERRY KAY, a 2006 inductee into the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame, is the author of The Book of Marie, recently released by Mercer University Press. Kay has been a sports writer and film/theater reviewer (Atlanta Journal-Constitution), a public relations executive, and a corporate officer. He is the author of nine other published novels, including To Dance with the White Dog, The Valley of Light, Taking Lottie Home, The Kidnapping of Aaron Greene, Shadow Song, The Runaway, Dark Thirty, After Eli, and The Year the Lights Came On, as well as a book of essays (Special K) and a childrens book (To Whom the Angel Spoke)."

Reviews

[C.L. Hoang · Rating 5 out of 5]

The listed description of this hardcover edition is not correct.
I'm reviewing The Runaway by Terry Kay, the story of an unusual friendship between two boys in the Deep South in the aftermath of WWII. The book is reminiscent of Mark Twain and Harper Lee in its subject, but with its own twist about a heinous crime that keeps the reader guessing. The author has masterfully recreated a time and place long since gone in order to address some weighty issues of our time. I love this book.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I fell in love with this book! It had a mix of everything. Mystery, love, family, racial tensions, good vs. evil. I don't think you will be disappointed if you read this!!

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think overall Terry Kay is a wonderful writer and has a great voice and ability to make his characters live. I loved the character Tom and how reading inspired him to run away by reenacting the stories he read about; then how Kay took the theme of running away to running to promise and hope for Son Jesus at the end. I also like the subtle way he informs us of who the murderer of Harlan Davis was at the end. I didn't buy the romance between Evelyn and Frank. I think he was a great and compassionate sheriff, but too much of a sap to fall for Evelyn's "if you want to make love to me, marry me," ploy. I would liked to have seen the character of Ada more developed as she was certainly a strong woman and ahead of her time. I think Conjure Woman was almost mythical, perhaps symbolizing the mystery and strangeness that exists between peoples of different races and cultures. The blacks gathered strength from her but also feared her (or that part of themselves.) The whites feared her but couldn't make her go away.

[Pamela · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book jumped out at me as I was passing by a shelf of books at my In-law's beach house. My husband's maternal grandparents grew up in Royston, Georgia, where this author was born. I started reading it and only put it down to sleep and do real life,; it is one of those books that just took me in, and taught me a few important things along the way .

This book takes place in a southern setting before and after WW II and gave me the seemless feeling floating in the air there in the story, being taken along with the colorful folks of Overton and Crossover, cheering for its heroes and scowling at its villains, all while sniffing scents on the breeze or cooling down with a glass of tea.
I will definitely read more books from this author, who sadly passed away due to liver cancer.
If you ever wondered what it might have felt like to be on the edge of "that's just how things are" and "that's how things could be", I think this author, Terry Kay, captures it in this book and storytells it so that you want the story to continue on, which he accomplishes so well by making so many of the people in his book the kind of folks we'd like to know.
I don't want to tell you much, because part of what made this book so interesting to me is not having any idea where it was going, but I can say this from knowing folks from the deep south, it was refreshing to read this author's perspective and his desire to help me see just how many links in a chain it takes to see change come about.

[Tony Entrekin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Georgia author Kay creates a post-WWII south Georgia town with an authentic feel for both the beauty and ugliness of the southern culture and land. The Runaway is a mixture of mystery, regionalism, and courtroom drama with a slight bit of awkward romance, but primarily it's a portrayal of racism in the south and the beginning of changing attitudes regarding race following the globalism of WWII. The characters might at times seem to be southern stereotypes, but they have qualities that set them apart from cardboard cutouts. The narrative is at times humorous and shockingly brutal, but any novel that seeks to realistically portray the south has to be. As in the novel, there is great beauty and terrible ugliness in the south, but there is also a hopeful atmosphere for change.

[CarolAnn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an excellent novel of southern flavor during the desegregation of the land. I liked Tom Winters who is a young white boy who is described as going to be great when he grows up or spent his life in jail. His best friend is Son Jesus, a black boy who shared his birth day with Tom. Son Jesus' mother was told by the local "witch woman" that the two boys would be bound together and bring about a great change. It was an emotion filled novel. I'll have to look up more novels be Terry Kay.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Runaway is a novel that takes place in a small town in the South in the late 1940's. After World War II, things in the South are beginning to change, but some of the white men in the rural South are not ready for change. Two boys, one who is white and one who is black, have been best friends since birth and their childhood shenanigans unwittingly set in motion a stirring of the pot in this small town. Racial tensions are high and it becomes clear that being a good person has nothing to do with skin color.

[Rona Simmons · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took me awhile to get into this story, but once I did, I had to finish its 400 pages to see how Terry Kay resolved all the twists and turns. Not my favorite of my favorite author, but worth reading and seeing how a master at southern dialog and scene description works his magic. For example,
“There was only a smear of day left on the horizon, a single red-bellied cloud holding a nail-scratch of light from the sun when Frank crossed the bridge at Sweetwater Creek...”

[Eileen · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you like books by Fannie Flagg, you will love Terry Kay. Takes one back to the time after WWII to a small southern town in GA during the horrible time of Jim Crow. But a change was in the air. Two born the same night; one black and the other white. Conjure Woman shows up at the cabin of the newborn black baby and says "There be a white boy too. They be bound. They make the change".

[Ginger · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book. I have read several of Terry Kay's books and I will read all of them. I was saddened to see he passed away in December 2020. Very good author. The Runaway is set in the south, post WWII and deals strongly with racism. It is an important book and also shows how far we have NOT come with racial issues. Highly recommended.

[Marlene Russell]

I enjoyed Terry Kay's The Runaway. A southern story about two boys, black and white, their
friendship, heartaches and their differences. His descriptions are beautiful, and I totally enjoyed
his way of saving the best for last. Terry Kay recently passed away, and I was saddened on losing a wonderful Southern writer. 3-19-21

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Set in the 1940's in a small segregated town, was really interesting in that the sheriff was more than happy to pin a murder on an African American boy - the whole book examines the clashes, sorrows, joys and racial problems in a very biased environment and what it does to two boys friendship….

[Vicky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well written characters, some likable, some downright evil. Set during a time of racial injustice and limited rights for women, this book explored events that would have played out much differently if they happened today.

[Mary Kinietz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like To Kill a Mocking Bird in some ways.

[Pam · Rating 1 out of 5]

I usually like Terry Kay's writing. In fact, To Dance With the White Dog is a favorite book of mine. But, this book just didn't grab me.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite books. Right up there with To Kill a Mockingbird!

[karen higgins]

Read

Best story, easy to read. Good story makes you think about the challenge of growing up in that time. Excellent

[Jan Pocock · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story about the culture of the us during segregation. And how resilient people were. With a great crime story and love story

[Sarah J · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a slower burn but does a good job of setting the scene and building the characters. The end is mildly predictable. Overall not great but not bad. A decent book that covers hard topics

[Gisele · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truly a period piece... of the time it was written (1971) and also of the time it was set in (1946). A fine bit of storytelling... Terry Kay passed away in December 2020 and I shall miss his literary voice.

[Linda W. Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sad Reminder

This is a wonderful story about life in the south and the close friendship of two young boys. Unfortunately, it is a reminder that racism hasn't changed much and we have much work to do. It took me a while to read this book because of the shame and embarrassment I experienced thinking that black people were and are in some cases considered to be of less value than whites. I couldn't imagine treating another human being with such disrespect and hatred. We need to fix this now.

[Shoshanah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Back when I read A Land More Kind Than Home by Wiley Cash I mention how much it reminded me to To Kill a Mockingbird. Now with The Runaway I can saw not only did it reminded me of To Kill a Mockingbird but also of A Land More Kind Than Home.

All three start off with a child in a small Southern town who is innocent of the political and social issues that those older than them are dealing with. Except while that child is the focus of the entire book in the other two, it isn't the case here. In The Runaway we start of with Tom, a young boy who likes to runaway from home, but about a quarter of the way through the book the main narrator switches to the sheriff of the town. Tom is still mentioned throughout, and is the catalyst for the events that follow, but it isn't really his story.

I'm not quite sure the cover fits the book though. At least until I looked at the covers of both To Kill a Mockingbird and A Land More Kind Than Home, because it actually fits in with the mood of each of those. It's just more that it isn't what I would have chosen, and I don't feel it really captures the essence of the story..

I did have a bit of a hard time getting through this. It was actually our book club book, but I wasn't able to finish it till a few days after we met. It wasn't that I disliked the book, since overall I actually enjoyed myself, it's just that it read slowly. In some ways it read like a dog day of summer, the type where you're enjoying yourself, but the day seems to last forever. But now that I'm looking back, part of me wishes I could go back and relive it.

[justablondemoment · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good book. There were parts of it that didn't make sense to me especially towards the end. One of those books that in places you had to read between the lines as it wasn't just spelled out for you and I just couldn't get what was said. left me with unanswered questions of what happened. Even know a few days after having read it I'm still thinking about it though still trying to figure it out. I saw the movie some time back and hadn't remembered that till i started reading it. Would recommended.

[Clairidactyl Simpson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book pleasantly surprised me. This was the first book I've ever read by Terry Kay and his style reminded me of some of Mark Twain works. The characters were all unforgettable and complex through the coarse of the story. What I enjoyed most was each time I thought I could see where the plot was headed I was met with a twist I did not foresee. Great as a bookclub book, The Runaway brought a lively conversation back to the table. Would recommend to almost anyone who loves a good story.

[Margaret]

Wow, this book was so much better than I thought it might be - I really enjoyed reading it. Rather southern in flavor with some great values expressed through the characters - kind of in the style of To Kill a Mockingbird. I would read more by this author.

[Patience Cole · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book featuring so many nasty aspects of racism in the south. Terry Kay is a fantastic author and he truly paints the scenes so well with his words. Even though the subject matter is difficult to think about, it is a great book. I couldn't put it down.

[Elaine Cougler · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Runaway by Terry Kay was a great find off the bargain racks at Chapters. Set in the Deep South after WWII, the book pinpoints the changes in attitudes towards blacks brought about in those--or some of those--who went to war. Great suspense, real people, good language--this guy can write!

[Jayme Villanueva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book! Good story of the South and children growing up in the times of segregation. Quick read too!

[Cranbery · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorites.........shows that we can break away from "How It Has Always Been"!!
A masterpiece.........

[Brooke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read a couple of times, each time I get more out of it. Definitely a page-turner and a beautifully unraveling mystery. Son Jesus stole my heart.