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Clarence Olgibee
It starts with a murder. In 1974, 17-year-old Jimmy Tate Sullivan watched his two friends bludgeon to death a black man. Sentenced to life for abetting the crime, Sullivan is initiated into a white- supremacist church by a fellow convict, once the best friend of an African-American teenager, Clarence Olgibee. Shifting back to 1954, this family saga is about race, religion, and the powerful white men in a sleepy Midwestern town who plan a new world order Olgibee tries to escape. Small choices have fateful consequences— in this life and the next. Olgibee’s choices lead him back to the two women he loved and an ultimate decision.
428 pages, Paperback
Published March 1, 2016
2 people are currently reading
22 people want to read
About the author
Alan S. Kessler
10 books93 followersToday, 2/11/21, is the first time I am using this space to say a little about myself.
Shyness, a belief I would bore readers with my background or cause them to think I was using it to selfishly gain sympathy, prevented me in the past from sharing biographical information. However, because of my new novel, Ghost Dancer, I believe it is now appropriate to mention a few aspects of my childhood.
With Ghost Dancer I am a white male writing about a teenage girl, Native and African Americans, and a same sex, female relationship. So the question is, am I also “…a white liberal interloper, a cultural [gender] carpetbagger…” the criticism leveled at William Styron for writing The Confessions of Nat Turner? (William Styron’s Nat Turner: Ten Black Writers Respond.)
My mother was sadistic, my father--a murderer who sentenced to the electric chair died in prison--beat me. I know about childhood abuse and marginalized people. Because of my own childhood struggles I could write about Eleanor, the teenage protagonist in Ghost Dancer, with an insight transcending gender. I care about her. Although fictional she is authentic and I am grateful I could give her a voice.
I hope readers will find Ghost Dancer worthwhile and my treatment of the subject matter respectful. I know with this story I have walked on sacred ground. I have tried to do so with an honest and open heart.
Shyness, a belief I would bore readers with my background or cause them to think I was using it to selfishly gain sympathy, prevented me in the past from sharing biographical information. However, because of my new novel, Ghost Dancer, I believe it is now appropriate to mention a few aspects of my childhood.
With Ghost Dancer I am a white male writing about a teenage girl, Native and African Americans, and a same sex, female relationship. So the question is, am I also “…a white liberal interloper, a cultural [gender] carpetbagger…” the criticism leveled at William Styron for writing The Confessions of Nat Turner? (William Styron’s Nat Turner: Ten Black Writers Respond.)
My mother was sadistic, my father--a murderer who sentenced to the electric chair died in prison--beat me. I know about childhood abuse and marginalized people. Because of my own childhood struggles I could write about Eleanor, the teenage protagonist in Ghost Dancer, with an insight transcending gender. I care about her. Although fictional she is authentic and I am grateful I could give her a voice.
I hope readers will find Ghost Dancer worthwhile and my treatment of the subject matter respectful. I know with this story I have walked on sacred ground. I have tried to do so with an honest and open heart.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
April 6, 2018
Racism and contrast are rife in this book, which follows a young black man in Ohio, where the white men have all the power in the 1950s, through Navy service in the Philippines, when he gets treated pretty much as an equal, if he has to go to a Manila brothel for it.
The novel starts with an unprovoked racist killing in the 1970s, an unwilling witness going to jail as an accomplice. Once in jail this man finds the only way to survive is to join a gang, but this gang is a deluded white supremacist group.
I found the linking theme to be how little control the two different men had over their lives or companions. Clarence, the black man, has occasional flashes of paranormal sight, which he keeps to himself. Later he is compared to a shaman. He's no paragon, and by the late part of the book is trying to convince his widowed landlady he has found the light through her help, hoping to marry her and raise his status. This impinges on his drinking.
I understand that the book emphasises the doings of racists and creedists in order to show how little you would want these people ruling your world. However, when everyone seems to be an anti-hero and the dialogue is peppered with expletives and violent aims, political spite and violence, and women are objectifed by most, the book really isn't for me. There's crime, and food science, and politics of the 1960s. Other readers will enjoy it more, and I thought the background was well described. (For instance a moneyed man wipes his nose on the sleeve of his silk suit.) The author has put a lot of work and brutal honesty into his writing. This is definitely an adult read.
I was sent an e-ARC by the author. This is an unbiased review.
The novel starts with an unprovoked racist killing in the 1970s, an unwilling witness going to jail as an accomplice. Once in jail this man finds the only way to survive is to join a gang, but this gang is a deluded white supremacist group.
I found the linking theme to be how little control the two different men had over their lives or companions. Clarence, the black man, has occasional flashes of paranormal sight, which he keeps to himself. Later he is compared to a shaman. He's no paragon, and by the late part of the book is trying to convince his widowed landlady he has found the light through her help, hoping to marry her and raise his status. This impinges on his drinking.
I understand that the book emphasises the doings of racists and creedists in order to show how little you would want these people ruling your world. However, when everyone seems to be an anti-hero and the dialogue is peppered with expletives and violent aims, political spite and violence, and women are objectifed by most, the book really isn't for me. There's crime, and food science, and politics of the 1960s. Other readers will enjoy it more, and I thought the background was well described. (For instance a moneyed man wipes his nose on the sleeve of his silk suit.) The author has put a lot of work and brutal honesty into his writing. This is definitely an adult read.
I was sent an e-ARC by the author. This is an unbiased review.
December 19, 2016
I remember my first encounter with racial hatred like it was yesterday. I grew up in New England where it seemed basically a non-issue then moved to D.C. in '61. While in high school I took a road trip with friends to Ft. Lauderdale for spring break and was wandering along the beach. I headed for a trailer parked on the beach to purchase a hot dog and got in line behind a middle aged black man. He got his sandwich and started to leave then turned back and asked if he could have some mustard. The woman behind the counter grabbed a few mustard packets and threw them at him, the expression on her face one of intense hatred. As he bent to the sand to pick up the packets, she turned to me, said "Damn N----s! Give them an inch ..." Flashing a big smile she said, "And what can I get for you?" "Sorry", said I, "I seem to have lost my appetite." And I turned and walked away.
This book provides insight into racial attitudes, how they are formed, their corrosive effects, and the impact on both the victims and the perpetrators. I was given a copy by the author in exchange for a review and it has helped pass the time as my "lunch book".
I found the writing to be uneven. Often smooth and flowing, other times jerky and fragmented. Rather than a linear story, the novel bounces from character to character which had me wondering at times exactly what the point of the story was, why the author was switching at the point and causing me to go back and review portions so I could see where they fit in the flow of the narrative. The number of typos tended to be a distraction, including even, the spelling of the title characters last name. There are several areas that a good editor could have tightened up and a number of places where plot strings remained loose. For example, did the girl friend as junkie actually happen or was that just part of a dream sequence? Did the best friend ever find out he was being blamed for her pregnancy? Was there ever any indication it could have happened that way other than the "rambling comments" of his dead cousin?
The characters themselves are not particularly sympathetic and I kept waiting for a hero of some form to emerge but that did not happen.
I hate to come down to hard on this book. Writing a novel is hard work and far be it from me to discourage anyone but this came across more as a work in progress with a need for a good deal of polishing.
This book provides insight into racial attitudes, how they are formed, their corrosive effects, and the impact on both the victims and the perpetrators. I was given a copy by the author in exchange for a review and it has helped pass the time as my "lunch book".
I found the writing to be uneven. Often smooth and flowing, other times jerky and fragmented. Rather than a linear story, the novel bounces from character to character which had me wondering at times exactly what the point of the story was, why the author was switching at the point and causing me to go back and review portions so I could see where they fit in the flow of the narrative. The number of typos tended to be a distraction, including even, the spelling of the title characters last name. There are several areas that a good editor could have tightened up and a number of places where plot strings remained loose. For example, did the girl friend as junkie actually happen or was that just part of a dream sequence? Did the best friend ever find out he was being blamed for her pregnancy? Was there ever any indication it could have happened that way other than the "rambling comments" of his dead cousin?
The characters themselves are not particularly sympathetic and I kept waiting for a hero of some form to emerge but that did not happen.
I hate to come down to hard on this book. Writing a novel is hard work and far be it from me to discourage anyone but this came across more as a work in progress with a need for a good deal of polishing.
April 21, 2016
Alan S. Kessler’s Clarence Olgibee is a grim satire. That sounds like an oxymoron because satires traditionally make us laugh, and this one certainly delivers chuckles quite often. But it also paints a dark, dark world. Covering almost three decades, it skewers societal attitudes against blacks, Jews, the rich, the poor, women, and even religion. It is a sprawling saga that begins with a young man in prison in 1974 Texas , then flashes back to the teenage years of Clarence, a black boy in Ohio. We then wind our way through Clarence’s life and the lives of his friends and all they come in contact with. And just when we, as readers, wonder what this all has to do with that Texas prisoner, the author connects it all—and the connection is mind-blowing. There is a lot to be learned from this novel, and the author hammers his message from beginning to end. I particularly liked that, though it told the story of black man in America, it didn’t stick to just a condemnation of racism. It pretty much condemns most of what is wrong with our country. Kessler writes well, and his skill helps him get his points across. My only criticism is that the editor should have been more judicious. The dialogue here is spot on; the narrative needs the cutting knife of an editorial surgeon. Sentences go on and on: I counted one sentence that weighed in at 104 words! And many are over 50 words, spilling out so many details that, although interesting, could be cut and we’d never feel the loss. And too, the author overuses participles. Seeing so many sentence constructions strung together with words ending in “ing” was disconcerting. A better editor would have flagged those and asked Kessler to restructure. They—because they defined those enormously long sentences—interrupted the flow, and I feel were a detriment to the message. But we don’t pick our editors. Oftentimes, we feel powerless to override their decisions. In this case, if the editor never mentioned those over-long sentences, the author would remain clueless that he could improve the narrative immensely. The book is 425 pages long; I believe at least a hundred of those pages could be eliminated and thus improve a fine tale. And this is fine, inventive tale. Kessler’s message is admirable, and he couches it in humor and interesting characters.
April 18, 2018
I'm supposed to have a full review of this up tomorrow, but I think I need to mull it over for a while. Mr. Kessler has certainly given me a lot to think about. 🤔
*****
UPDATE: Full review is now up on RaeleighReads. In short, an excellent and a bit eerie, read. Check it out!
*****
UPDATE: Full review is now up on RaeleighReads. In short, an excellent and a bit eerie, read. Check it out!
April 27, 2016
Mrs. Olgibee has seen what it means to be no-account, and as a black mother, she is determined that category will never be applied to Clarence. Unfortunately her loveless discipline backfires, and Clarence trades his dream of medical school and jazz piano for the physical attractions of a light-skinned girl whose universe revolves only around herself. Clarence’s friend, Todd, is the only white boy at school. His ultra-liberal family sacrificed a Manhattan apartment for the spiritual joy of being the only white family in the black neighborhood. After Todd’s father commits suicide, a white supremacist lures the boy into his clutches and programs him to hate and kill. Meanwhile, Clarence knocks-up conceited Gwen, and while in an odd state of denial, joins the Navy to escape the burdens of fatherhood, earning his mother’s excommunication. Space limits comments on all the characters. Additionally we have an idiot savant, an inbred hick, numerous racists killers, a Filipina freedom fighter and an alcoholic, probably syphilitic, philanthropist who rescues animals, and people, only to let them wither and die. After all that there is still a cast too numerous to mention.
Clarence Olgibee is long convoluted story that deals frankly with racism and the disenfranchisement of minorities in the early fifties. It shines light on the neighborhood covenants prohibiting property sales to non-whites. It confronts tacit and overt segregation, and racial violence. Allen Kessler’s prose is elegant and descriptive, and his characters are wonderfully developed with unique voices. The downside is length. In the opinion of this reader, some of the scenes, well done though they are, do not add to the story. However, if you read for the glory of words, Clarence Olgibee is for you.
Clarence Olgibee is long convoluted story that deals frankly with racism and the disenfranchisement of minorities in the early fifties. It shines light on the neighborhood covenants prohibiting property sales to non-whites. It confronts tacit and overt segregation, and racial violence. Allen Kessler’s prose is elegant and descriptive, and his characters are wonderfully developed with unique voices. The downside is length. In the opinion of this reader, some of the scenes, well done though they are, do not add to the story. However, if you read for the glory of words, Clarence Olgibee is for you.
September 15, 2016
Clarence Oglibee by Alan S. Kessler is an intriguing yet dark tale. One that shows the true ugliness of human nature. Racism is just a nightmare in fiction but in the real world too. No matter how many years go by there will always be racism issues bringing down people everywhere. Society is to blame. Yet it's also the people who build up that society.
Alan S. Kessler's writing is superb. I was pulled into the plot instantly. The story held me captive. Sending shivers down my spine and suspense was like a thick heavy blanket. Brutal, raw, and an honest telling of how these situations occur everywhere. Racism has been imprinted upon birth almost programmed into our DNA. Generation after generation and still the struggles are real. Black seems to be forever lost in world not ready to let go of it's evilness. The words are three dimensional. Popping to life with every page. The action is intense. Leaving me sitting on the edge of my chair holding in my breath.
Consequences of cruelty stays pressed up in one's mind forever. The images never fade. That's exactly where Jimmy Tate Sullivan lies. His friends beat to death an innocent black man on the streets. A man that was heading home. Yet the white young men were drunk and looking for trouble. Trouble came and cost a man his life. Jimmy ended up spending time in jail. As rightly so. The plot gets darker as the story continues to unfold for the main character. Choices have to be made. Danger hangs tightly in the air.
Overall, I highly recommend this stunning yet realistic tale to readers worldwide.
Alan S. Kessler's writing is superb. I was pulled into the plot instantly. The story held me captive. Sending shivers down my spine and suspense was like a thick heavy blanket. Brutal, raw, and an honest telling of how these situations occur everywhere. Racism has been imprinted upon birth almost programmed into our DNA. Generation after generation and still the struggles are real. Black seems to be forever lost in world not ready to let go of it's evilness. The words are three dimensional. Popping to life with every page. The action is intense. Leaving me sitting on the edge of my chair holding in my breath.
Consequences of cruelty stays pressed up in one's mind forever. The images never fade. That's exactly where Jimmy Tate Sullivan lies. His friends beat to death an innocent black man on the streets. A man that was heading home. Yet the white young men were drunk and looking for trouble. Trouble came and cost a man his life. Jimmy ended up spending time in jail. As rightly so. The plot gets darker as the story continues to unfold for the main character. Choices have to be made. Danger hangs tightly in the air.
Overall, I highly recommend this stunning yet realistic tale to readers worldwide.
October 12, 2016
It starts with a murder. In 197, 17-year-old Jimmy Tate Sullivan watched his two friends bludgeon to death a black man. Sentenced to life for abetting the crime, Sullivan is initiated into a white supremacist church by a fellow convict, once the best friend of an African-American teenager. Clarence Olgibee. Shifting back to 1954, this family saga is about race, religion, and the powerful white men in a sleep Midwestern town who plan a new world order Olgibee tries to escape. Small choices have fateful consequences- in this life and the next. Olgibee’s choices lead him back to the two women he loved and an ultimate decision.
This book is suitable for mature adults.
This book started out amazing. I don’t like to quit books but I have to admit I wanted to several times with this one. It started out so good so interesting but then when it went back to 1954 I found myself getting lost. The switching between characters was very confusing. The author sent me a copy of this book though and I felt he deserved a review where I actually finished reading the book.
I was given a copy from the author for an honest review.
I rate this book a 3 out of 5 stars.
This book is suitable for mature adults.
This book started out amazing. I don’t like to quit books but I have to admit I wanted to several times with this one. It started out so good so interesting but then when it went back to 1954 I found myself getting lost. The switching between characters was very confusing. The author sent me a copy of this book though and I felt he deserved a review where I actually finished reading the book.
I was given a copy from the author for an honest review.
I rate this book a 3 out of 5 stars.
April 21, 2016
CLARENCE OLGIBEE BY ALAN S KESSLER tells the tale first of Jimmy Tate Sullivan, who in 1974 stood by and watched his friends beat a black man to death. Jimmy found guilty is sentenced to life in prison where his life,of course, makes a dramatic change . That story is told first to lead the reader into CLARENCE OLGIBEE growing up in 1954, where we really learn that actions do present consequences no matter if they are good or bad actions. As the pages flip by you keep going deeper and deeper into the lives of Clarence and his friends & family, racism and class conflicts. Its not a pretty book but it is a book that is worthy of a read, and not a bad read from an "unknown author" (mr. kessler's words not mine!) I see good things coming from this author!
I received this book free from the author in exchange for a review.
I received this book free from the author in exchange for a review.
May 23, 2016
Extremely Well Done
First of all, thanks to Alan Kessler for the invitation to read and review this book. For an "unknown writer," all I can say is bravo! It is not an easy book to read; Kessler's prose is an excellent, and wrenching, honest look at the 50s and race relations in the American South. The characters are well defined, including their back stories. Tensions build, and the entire plot line is so terribly believable. I really look forward to more from this exceptional author.
First of all, thanks to Alan Kessler for the invitation to read and review this book. For an "unknown writer," all I can say is bravo! It is not an easy book to read; Kessler's prose is an excellent, and wrenching, honest look at the 50s and race relations in the American South. The characters are well defined, including their back stories. Tensions build, and the entire plot line is so terribly believable. I really look forward to more from this exceptional author.
January 17, 2017
Very good...a bit of a slow burn.
This is one of those books that I may well decide later is a five star book. Very dark misogynistic scenes with a lot of light at the end of the tunnel. A difficult apologetic to get through but one that has some staying power. Definitely NOT the feel good read of the summer but perhaps the most enduring book that I have read in a long time.
This is one of those books that I may well decide later is a five star book. Very dark misogynistic scenes with a lot of light at the end of the tunnel. A difficult apologetic to get through but one that has some staying power. Definitely NOT the feel good read of the summer but perhaps the most enduring book that I have read in a long time.
May 10, 2016
I am not a quitter, and have a tendency to slog on through books even when I'm not particularly enjoying them. I felt an obligation to finish this book, mainly out of a hope that Clarence Olgibee would eventually have a good life and make amends for the mistakes he made along the way and the people he hurt. It's a vast, sprawling novel, following Clarence through many phases of his life, both good and bad, but it's easy to get lost in the narrative because of the dense writing style. The many characters, most of whom were not likeable or relatable, became difficult to follow. The pervasive white supremacist theme was at times just confusing.
The many spelling and grammar mistakes and the sometimes overly complex sentences were a source of irritation. Here are some examples:
"Apparently the man used a number of alias in his life..." (should be aliases)
"Munson and the other man rubbed Sullivan's blood on their face..." (should be faces)
"...catching himself he scrapped his hands on the small rocks." (should be scraped)
"Clarence swirled upward through red hot candlelight flaring into an exploding radiance dispersing his energy into a night of thunder, wind and lightning..." (overworked metaphor; missing commas)
"Clarence's made love to Gwen behind the wood pile..." (should be Clarence)
"Pale, biting her lip, Tina stared back definantly..." (should be defiantly)
"...if she showed up in peddle pushers..." (should be pedal pushers)
"...Clarence took the old nachpkins out... (should be napkins)
"You're English is great..." (should be Your)
"Anthetized by highballs and martinis..." (should be anesthetized)
Unfortunately, the unlikable characters, confusing plot and editing errors added up to an unrewarding experience.
The many spelling and grammar mistakes and the sometimes overly complex sentences were a source of irritation. Here are some examples:
"Apparently the man used a number of alias in his life..." (should be aliases)
"Munson and the other man rubbed Sullivan's blood on their face..." (should be faces)
"...catching himself he scrapped his hands on the small rocks." (should be scraped)
"Clarence swirled upward through red hot candlelight flaring into an exploding radiance dispersing his energy into a night of thunder, wind and lightning..." (overworked metaphor; missing commas)
"Clarence's made love to Gwen behind the wood pile..." (should be Clarence)
"Pale, biting her lip, Tina stared back definantly..." (should be defiantly)
"...if she showed up in peddle pushers..." (should be pedal pushers)
"...Clarence took the old nachpkins out... (should be napkins)
"You're English is great..." (should be Your)
"Anthetized by highballs and martinis..." (should be anesthetized)
Unfortunately, the unlikable characters, confusing plot and editing errors added up to an unrewarding experience.
May 6, 2016
Clarence Olgibee was a black kid who grew up in Ohio. Both his parents were teachers, his mother overbearing. She tried to mold her son into something he could never be. Clarence, like most teenage boys, was driven by his hormones and got a girl pregnant. He chose to run and enlisted in the Navy. Faced with prejudice and racism, he struggled in the environment. An explosion onboard the vessel he was serving on led Clarence to his most heroic act, he saved a drowning man's life. Disillusioned and desperate, Clarence became a deserter. Forced to hide for the rest of his life by his actions, Clarence died haunted by bigotry and poor decisions. Kessler's style is challenging, but his voice speaks to the human condition that still thrives in modern day America.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews