West of Rehoboth

by Alexs D. Pate

Set in the early 1960s, West of Rehoboth is the moving story of twelve-year-old Edward Massey. Each summer, to escape the heat of Philadelphia, Edward's family travels to Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. A pristine resort untouched by racial integration, Rehoboth Beach offers work for his mother and a sandy playground for his sister. But for Edward -- an imaginative boy smitten with Agatha Christie's master sleuth Hercule Poirot -- it offers the the chance to understand his curmudgeonly uncle Rufus, a man caught in a swirl of hard luck and bad choices. Forging a tenuous bond, their relationship will take Edward on a harrowing journey through Rufus' past -- an amalgam of violence, disappointment, and frustration. As he tries to make sense of the sadness and despair of his uncle's life, Edward must struggle to avoid losing himself to the same destiny. In this mesmerizing and elegant story, Pate tells the tale of a family on the brink of turmoil -- and of the compassionate and healing power of one unforgettable boy.

Genres: Fiction, African American, Historical Fiction, Audiobook, Novels

256 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2001

About the author

Alexs pate is an Assistant Professor in African American and African Studies at the University of Minnesota, where he teaches courses in writing and black literature, including a course on “The Poetry of Rap.” He also teaches fiction writing at the University of Southern Maine’s Stonecoast M.F.A. program in Portland, Maine.

Reviews

[Phyllis | Mocha Drop · Rating 3 out of 5]

West of Rehobeth is a coming of age story for a 12 year-old African American boy, Eddie Massey. He (along with his mother and sister) spends summers away from the inner city to the "safety" of Rehobeth, DE with his Aunt Edna and the mysterious Uncle Rufus. Through a twist of fate (and a bit of the supernatural), Eddie and Uncle Rufus bond and share a cosmic episode that releases the answers to Eddie's questions...in more ways than he can imagine. Uncle Rufus's life is truly tragic and full of misery...I felt deeply for the character and all that he represented. However, I felt the book lagged...the beginning was slow, it gained momentum toward the middle and concluded with a dismal ending. I was very disappointed with the conclusion. It was a well written book with good character development...once it got going it was a solid body of work...but I had to take points away for the slow start and mediocre ending. This was my first read by Alexs Pate and I'm willing to read his other works.

[Joyce Campion · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting novel selected solely based on the setting location so near to our home. The topic of race discrimination and cultural struggles in that era is eerily similar in some ways to what the world is experiencing today.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Coming of age for Edward Massey a 12 year-old black boy grew up in North Philly, and spent their summers in Rehoboth Delaware in the early 60s. Eddie loves Agatha Christie stories, particularly ones that feature Hercule Poirot. Eddie has mystery to solve in Rehoboth, someone killed his turtle, and he suspects his Uncle did it.
The story is more than a mystery. Eddie learns what it means to grow up being black in America.
Great story, I recommend it.

[Haritha · Rating 3 out of 5]

State #4 Delaware
Book #4 in my literary journey through USA

This book is set in the 1960s in Rehoboth Beach, DE, and showcases the deep-seated and explicit racism that permeated society. It also highlights how the black experience varies by class, location—even inside what is considered the same geographic "region", and sheer luck. What stood out to me was how poverty and discrimination deprive you of the resilience to life's hard knocks. The premise of the book is strong, however, it does not manage to deliver at the end. I'm inflating the rating up from 2 to 3 stars as I am indeed a freshly minted Delawarean and am partial to its setting.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very strongly recommend the audiobook version. Dion Graham's use of voice and accent enhances what is already a simultaneously a sad and nostalgic tale of summertime in the era of Jim Crow. Definitely my favorite work of Delaware fiction so far, with an extra bonus of some Philadelphia at the beginning.

[Phylwil · Rating 3 out of 5]

Delaware.

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this for a neighborhood book club. I think I would probably give it a 3 1/2, but as that's not possible I rounded up. I enjoyed the Edward narrative, and his quest for mystery and answers. I didn't enjoy the Rufus narrative quite as much, and the book lost my interest quite a bit around the middle. But it picked up towards the end...so overall, good but not great for me. I loved being in Edward's head, hearing his take on race in the 50's, and how tensions were impacted his life. I also enjoyed learning about Rehobeth. Made for a great book club discussion though!

[Betsy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story is engaging to start, but lost direction when Edward got hung up on Uncle Rufus. The last third was difficult to fit in the beginning trajectory. I wish the book was a little longer so I could get more connection to Rufus and his relationship with Edward and with Edna. The saddest thing for me is that in the 60s, Edward's family was leaving Philadelphia in the summers to get away from the violence and they could still be doing that today.

[Trevor Klundert · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would have given this book a one star rating if it were not for some evidence of good writing — the author did have a way of writing scenes that did create a tangible tension in the reader. With that said, my biggest problem with this book was plot choices. The story moved in directions that were too vague at times or followed characters that were hard to care about.

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Surprising change of genre at the end. Also the end seemed to be rather abrupt - before the characters were fully fleshed out. Otherwise I enjoyed the picture of the mid-century black rural experience.

[Jackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was drawn to this book because I’m from Rehoboth. I feel like I enjoyed the book much more that I would have otherwise having been able to visualize exactly the locations being described. I also enjoyed the author reading the audiobook.

[Joseph Silversmith · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very fast read and a good book for the beach. I learned that Delaware has a challenging history with race and this novel did a great job exploring those themes. The story ended a bit suddenly but I still enjoyed it.

[Gladys Clearwaters · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting to Rehoboth Beach folks and black families/ neighborhoods. Fiction based on a real neighborhood which in 2020 no longer exists.

[Terry Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful prose and an extraordinary look at Black lives in the 60s.

[C Reed · Rating 2 out of 5]

A slice of time in Jim Crow era. Could lead to good discussions, but I found the repetition distracting. Unique layout of characters and plot, just not the book for me.

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I checked this out from the library because it is set in my home state of Delaware. I might not have sought it out otherwise, or even been aware of it, but I’m glad I read it. Set in the early 1960s, the book tells of a segregated Rehoboth Beach where the African-Americans of West Rehoboth work in the homes and businesses of wealthy white summer folk. The protagonist is a young bookworm Edward Massey, who spends his summers in West Rehoboth with his mother and sister while his father stays in Philadelphia to work. His mother works in a local restaurant all summer, and Edward and his sister are able to escape the city’s turmoil and gangs at their Aunt Edna’s boarding house/restaurant/store/dance hall. This particular summer, Edward is determined to find out more about mysterious “Uncle Rufus,” who lives in a shack at the back of Edna’s property. Everybody tells him to stay away, that Rufus is crazy, dangerous, even, but like his literary hero, Hercule Poirot, Edward won’t be satisfied until he knows the truth. On one hand, this is a coming-of-age story, Edward’s story, of Philadelphia gangs and not-so-carefree summer days. But it is also Rufus’s story: the story of a man who has found the hard side of life everywhere he turned.

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 (extra half star for the narrator!)
State: Delaware
Touted as a "coming of age" story for Edward, a young black boy who goes to Rehoboth from Philadelphia with his family every summer to visit Aunt Edna in the 60s. This summer he becomes a bit obsessed with Uncle Roscoe--a drunk who comes and goes and lives in a shack in the back of Edna's restaurant. I liked Edward--he reads Hercule Poirot and wants to use his "little gray cells" to figure out Roscoe. The story then veers off into Edna's youth. Then, Edward gets in Roscoe's truck to go to the dump and they're in an accident when we learn Roscoe's story. It's sad and he makes bad choices, kills a man (reminded me of Bigger from Native Son). Runs off to the merchant marines, a white man steals his money. (I knew it was coming and had to make myself finish). He goes back to Edna. These black man stories that "make" them the way they are I struggle with. It's awful, but they do make choices. I dunno. I'm becoming more informed and less judgmental.

[Erik · Rating 2 out of 5]

An interesting story, but I felt some of the scenes that held the most promise fell a little flat. Also, I think it would have worked better as a novella, trimming down the first third or so of the book regarding Edward. Most of the book (and the more interesting part) was about Rufus and having the concentration jump from Edward to Rufus just made the former part feel mostly unnecessary to me.

[Libby]

(A-Lib) Joe and I hoped to listen to this on our road trip to Delaware in 2021, but the trip got cancelled when Dad got sick. Instead, we listened to it in 2022. We were both surprised that so much of the story was about Rufus instead of Edward, but it was still neat to listen to on our drive. I love when we hear about something in the story and then see it in person (e.g., Dolle's Candy).

[Kitty · Rating 3 out of 5]

i was hoping for more history of rehoboth, but other than dollies popcorn, there was none to be had. i read it all, but i didn't really like it much.

[Cheryl Durham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alexs D. Pate did a fantastic job with the character development and momentum sweeps. The momentum sweeps are represented by flashbacks and much more. The story takes place during a dark time in American history: segregation.

Rehoboth is Hebrew and it means "open space." In the book, it's stated that Rehoboth means "room enough." The Massey family traveled to Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, from Philadelphia, ever summer because of the space and opportunity it offered. This provided the children, Eddie and his sister, the opportunity to run around, go to the beach and enjoy just being kids. There they did not have to worry about the gang violence and evils that was always present in their home town. It also gave his mother, Angela, the opportunity to work and return with money to help her husband with day to day living expenses.

While Angela worked the children were under the watchful house of their Aunt Edna. Edna's house did have "open space." At Edna's there was roam for the children to roam...and for the adults to unwind. Edna was the who's who of West Rehoboth. Her residence was a boarding house for the most part.

However, in the evenings, it was also a restaurant and a place for adults to dance and meet. She helped any and everyone however she could. If they needed a loan...she'd help. If putting in a good word for employment was needed...she did that. Everyone knew she'd help. They also knew not to forget the debt they owed and not to cross her.

During this visit, Eddie, wanted to use his detective skills to solve the mystery about someone he's been told to stay away from, his Uncle Rufus. I believe we all know someone like Rufus; if it wasn't for bad luck they wouldn't have any luck at all.

I am sure that West of Rehoboth will take you back to some instances of your own childhood. It definitely took me back to a time when outside activities were plentiful and the extended family had watchful eyes. That reflection still has me smiling.

It also made me nervous and frighten for Eddie as he got closer to Rufus. West of Rehoboth, because of its open space, is a place that offers just the right amount of freedom for anyone to find themselves or lose themselves. It is also a work that will have you rooting for Eddie because he was able to penetrate the shell of Rufus and lessen some of his pain. Thank you Alexs Pate for taking me back to such a time of innocence.