The Tragedy of Brady Sims

by Ernest J. Gaines

Ernest J. Gaines's new novella revolves around a courthouse shooting that leads a young reporter to uncover the long story of race and power in his small town and the relationship between the white sheriff and the black man who "whipped children" to keep order.

After Brady Sims pulls out a gun in a courtroom and shoots his own son, who has just been convicted of robbery and murder, he asks only to be allowed two hours before he'll give himself up to the sheriff. When the editor of the local newspaper asks his cub reporter to dig up a "human interest" story about Brady, he heads for the town's barbershop. It is the barbers and the regulars who hang out there who narrate with empathy, sadness, humor, and a profound understanding the life story of Brady Sims--an honorable, just, and unsparing man who with his tough love had been handed the task of keeping the black children of Bayonne, Louisiana in line to protect them from the unjust world in which they lived. And when his own son makes a fateful mistake, it is up to Brady to carry out the necessary reckoning. In the telling, we learn the story of a small southern town, divided by race, and the black community struggling to survive even as many of its inhabitants head off northwards during the Great Migration.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, African American, Novella, Race, Literature, Literary Fiction

114 pages, Paperback

First published August 29, 2017

About the author

Ernest James Gaines was an American author whose works have been taught in college classrooms and translated into many languages, including French, Spanish, German, Russian and Chinese. Four of his works were made into television movies.
His 1993 novel, A Lesson Before Dying, won the National Book Critics Circle Award for fiction. Gaines was a MacArthur Foundation fellow, was awarded the National Humanities Medal, and was inducted into the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Order of Arts and Letters) as a Chevalier.

Reviews

[Diane S ☔ · Rating 4 out of 5]

It has been many years since a book by Gaines has been written and published. Once again he writes about small town life, using a barbershop of his means of conveyance. A young reporter, assigned to write a human interest story about a shooting in a courtroom. Who was Brady Sims, and why would a white sheriff allow him the three hours he asked for after the shooting?

Gaines, in this short novel, once again chronicles what it is to be black, in a somewhat depressed area. Few opportunities, few jobs, few resources. Young men getting in trouble, sent to prisons where they return dead inside, hopeless, mere figments of their former selves. So through the men talking in the barber shop, we learn Brady Sims personal life, and his role in the black community. This is a stark but profound look into the many different faces of a man, how he was perceived by others.

I finished this wanting to know more about Brady Sims, felt I only had the basic connection to this man. Yet, as with many of Gaines novels, they stick with me for a long time. There is a basic honesty, truths in his novels that many cannot duplicate. As always his words hit home, open my eyes to the brutal realities of some.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brady Sims' son has just been sentenced to the electric chair, but he never makes it. As he's being escorted out by his guards, a voice behind them yells "boy" and as they turn around he's shot. The shooter is Brady Sims himself. He tells them to come for him in two hours and he'll gladly give himself up.

The events are witnessed by a report who is then assigned to write a human interest piece on it. Who is Brady Sims? Why did they give him two hours? Why did he kill his son? The story unfold with a melancholy sense of humor, and it does indeed contain a touch of tragedy, but not the way one might initially expect.

This is an excellent short work. Sims is a wonderfully three-dimensional character, being portrayed at times horribly and also with kindness. He's a human, prone to faults (many in fact) but not without his good deeds. He's an interesting character, and much like a side-character in a barbershop listening to stories about him, I found I should be doing something else, but wanted to just keep listening/reading.

While we don't get a lot of the characters outside of Sims, what we do get is well done. Much like Sims, the sheriff is another well done character. A white man who was friends with Sims, went out hunting with him repeatedly, and more than anything seems angry that he's the one who has to bring Sims in because he doesn't like the idea of being the one to send a friend to jail.

My copy was only 112 pages. This is a short work, but a very good one and well worth a read. This is the first thing I've read by Gains. It will not be the last. 4/5 stars

[Monica **can't read fast enough** · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Tragedy of Brady Sims is a perfect example of why I love Ernest Gaines' writing. Mr. Gaines wastes no time throwing his readers into a surprisingly calm yet violent situation that results from a vow made by Brady Sims. In The Tragedy of Brady Sims, Gaines exposes a tragic consequence for one family because of a belief held by many African American families that there's a need to punish their children harshly before 'they' can get a chance to claim them. The idea that children, especially male children, needed to be shown harsh boundaries and even harsher consequences no matter the motivation behind their behavior, is one that hits me squarely in the gut. Too many black children and young adults aren't allowed to freely be young and make mistakes and misjudgments without sometimes suffering devastating consequences.

One of the reasons that Gaines is a favorite author for me, is that despite the often tragic and disheartening topics his stories follow, the settings and people feel like home to me. I am able to almost see and hear the scenes unfolding. In The Tragedy of Brady Sims, I clearly see in my mind's eye the barber shop where the men gather. I can hear the pitch, timbre, and inflections in these men's voices. The dryness of responses and the side-eyed humor are all so clear. Although the majority of this story is heartbreaking, Gaines employs humor that can always be found with a gathering of old men. (I couldn't help myself.)

When it comes to laying out stories, Gaines doesn't tell his reader to look at how awful the world can be. Instead, he simply shows what has happened and trusts that his readers will see not only how disgustingly unfair the world can be, but that there is so much smoky grey fog in the world that most people get lost between what is right and what is wrong. Brady Sims is one of those men who gets lost in the fog. Needless to say The Tragedy of Brady Sims is going on my favorite reads list and I will be reading this one again and again over the years.

**I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.**

Where you can find me:
•(♥).•*Monica Is Reading*•.(♥)•
Twitter: @monicaisreading
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Goodreads Group: The Black Bookcase

[♥ Sandi ❣ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars
Brady Sims kills his own son, then asks for 2 hours before he is taken into custody. Cub reporter Louis Guerin is tasked with putting together a human interest story on Sims and hits the small town local Bayonne Louisiana barber shop to learn more about him. On thing he learns is that Sims has kept a lot of the local boys out of trouble, preventing them from ending up in the Angola prison. Sheriff Mapes, a lifelong friend of Sims, travels out to the Sims house to bring Brady in. Brady Sims is ready to go.

Short book by one of the best, in my opinion. Gaines writes from experience and from a no holds barred mentality. He is unafraid to bring his characters to life and show them as they lived - whether good or bad. He is able to say so much in so few words. You become that fly on the wall as the story unfolds and you are thankful for it.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

The size and form of this story, a novella, did not give it the power I found in A Lesson Before Dying or the festering anger of A Gathering of Old Men. Instead it seems more a story of lingering anguish, glimpsing possibilities but never reaching the goals, i.e. good jobs, a decent house, safety for your children without sending them to live across country, the right to be in a room with people of another color. Sheriff Mapes proves to be a more developed individual than I had considered...and I did know he ran against the white power curve in some ways. All in all, an interesting read from Mr. Gaines. I can't imagine any other kind. I will continue to read his books and recommend them to others.

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest review.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

After the shocking opening in which Brady Sims guns down his own son in a courtroom, a young reporter is charged with writing a ‘human interest story’ about Brady Sims. The reporter’s leads land him in a local barbershop. The barbers are in their seventies, chairs are patched with duct tape, and pictures of people like Malcolm X, Jackie Robinson, and Muhammad Ali line the walls. The barbers are always in the company of about five or six men, which is about as many as the shop can hold. Everyone isn’t always there for a haircut, but it’s a great place to pass the time. So it is here, through banter between the locals, that the reporter learns about the life of Brady Sims. As the history of this small southern town also begins to surface through the discussion, we discover that Sims has been entrusted as the town’s disciplinarian to prevent the town’s children from becoming part of a brutal criminal justice system; however, all citizens aren’t a fan of his tactics.

I believe themes of race and inequality in small southern towns have been discussed in black literature ad-nauseum. But in the end, this book made me laugh, cringe, reflect, and gasp. It’s black men dealing with real issues the best way they know how. What can I say - it is quintessential Ernest J. Gaines.

[Cynthia · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Tragedy of Brady Sims is a heavy book especially for one not much longer than one hundred pages. Most of the action ( though I should probably say conversation rather than action) takes place in a barber shop as old men talk about Brady and his life. The tragedy takes place earlier that day, one that shocks while at the same time feels inevitable given Brady's life.

As with other of Gaines's work the setting is a small, poor Louisiana town which deceptively seems somnolent to those passing through but a lot seethes below the surface. There's also comedy provided by one such out of Townes who happens to stop by for a haircut but becomes addicted to the storytelling. He can't make himself leave risking his home life when he makes up a flimsy excuse to his girlfriend about why he'll be late.

I sometimes hesitate to pick up one of Gaines's books because of the desperate underpinnings of his tales but he writes so well I can't help myself.

[Shawn Mooney (Shawn Breathes Books) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gaines's 1993 'A Lesson Before Dying' is one of the best, most heart-wrenching novels I've read about African Americans in the American South; this, his new novella, doesn't come close to its power to move and engross. An old African American gent, Brady Sims, shoots his son dead in the courtroom moments after the son is found guilty of capital crimes. By the end of the book, I didn't know why and didn't care nearly as much as I should have.

[Come Musica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Questo è per me il primo romanzo di Ernest J. Gaines che leggo.
La vicenda si svolge in Louisiana. Brady Sims è un uomo di colore che ha sparato a suo figlio mentre era in tribunale. A un giovane giornalista è chiesto di scrivere di questa sparatoria.

Gaines dà voce alla sua gente e alla sua terra: infatti, in questo breve romanzo, Gaines racconta cosa significa essere neri, in un'area un po' depressa, dove ci sono poche opportunità di crescita personale, pochi posti di lavoro, poche risorse. In queste terre è più facile che i giovani si mettano nei guai e finiscano in prigione, anziché che riescano a realizzarsi. Dalla prigione, poi, il più delle volte tornano morti dentro, senza speranza, intrappolati in una morsa senza via di uscita.
Ed è di questi giovani che si occupa Brady Sims, cercando di rieducarli, anche ricorrendo a maniere dure e poco ortodosse.

Gaines ci parla di Brady Sims, attraverso la voce degli uomini che frequentano il negozio del barbiere: conosciamo così la sua vita personale e il suo ruolo nella comunità nera.
"Brady conosce un solo linguaggio, che è quello della violenza. Non è colpa sua, è il solo linguaggio che gli è stato insegnato. Brady è anche generoso a modo suo, regala la selvaggina che caccia e gli ortaggi che coltiva. Brady sa anche che la violenza che passa dalla sua mano è un male minore di quella che questi ragazzi potrebbero subire per mano dei bianchi. Finire in carcere in Angola significherebbe morire, non fisicamente ma spiritualmente, il che è molto peggio."

Inoltre, "Il centro della narrativa di Gaines sono gli esseri umani e i loro sforzi per attestare la propria dignità in quanto essere umani."

Infine, Gaines "Scriveva dei neri perché era nero. Del Sud perché era del Sud. Cercava l'umanità dentro i propri personaggi, il significato di essere uomini."

Che bella scoperta questo scrittore, alla luce, anche della postfazione molto illuminante di Nicola Manuppelli, soprattutto per chi, come me, non aveva mai letto niente di Ernest Gaines.

[Kasa Cotugno · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's been a long time since a new work by Ernest J. Gaines has emerged. A Lesson Before Dying, one of my all time favorites, has had a place in my heart for over 20 years, and so this novella with similar themes held great promise. Ironically, I read this against the ongoing backdrop of noise regarding the frightening emergence of backsliding in civil rights in the current political scene, also the fact that earlier in the week I had read another book set in Louisiana that addressed living under Jim Crow. But Mr. Gaines has been a resident of that state for much of his life. Born on to a sharecropper on a plantation in 1933 he knows what it means from the inside. Much of this story unfolds in a barber shop, the center both social and necessary for exchange of information for the black male residents of Bayonne, LA. Told from the point of view of a reporter who has gone there to take the pulse of the community following a horrendous act, the story of Brady Sims unfolds told from various viewpoints, underscored in the second part when Sims is given yet another layer of meaning from the town sheriff. This short book carries more heart, more import and more meaning than many others I've read at three or four times its length.

[Beverly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ernest Gaines is a quintessential storyteller!

More coming shortly as I get my thoughts together.

[Andre(Read-A-Lot) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A novella from the inimitable Ernest Gaines. Although this book is but 128 pages it manages to tell a full story of Brady Sims. A horrific shooting has just taken place in the local courthouse set in rural Louisiana, like other Gaines' novels. The reporter of the community weekly witnesses the shooting and is charged by his editor to come up with a human interest story about Brady Sims by midnight. The reporter heads to the barbershop, and throws out the name of Brady Sims and the shop regulars weave a tale about the life and legend of Brady Sims. Of course the shop elders have to first make sure they can trust the young reporter before they sign off on a free wheeling discussion. Frank asks, Lucas, "You think this youngster is all right Lucas?" The reply from the owner is "sure, he comes from good stock."

Frank Jamison,"a short, dark-skinned man, with a big head, broad shoulders, high butt, and short back,"is the main story teller in the shop with other characters chiming in from time to time, and one cat, sitting behind the reporter keeps whispering questions to the writer, in hopes of not letting anything fall beyond his understanding . He is simply "the man with the fresh haircut "who came just to get a haircut but gets so caught up in the storytelling he stays riveted in his chair although he is on his way to "N'Awlens" to meet that "big Creole woman."

Through this barbershop storytelling and interjections from those hanging out in the shop, we get lessons on race relations in rural Louisiana , child rearing, a debate on what caused the great migration north, war or the tractor, and by virtue of the setting, the historical importance of the barbershop space as much more than a place to get a haircut. The story is sprinkled with humor, and an unspoken understanding of always doing what is right, even if it is painful.The only drawback to this book, is the abbreviated length. I just wanted to keep reading and like the character who was riveted I didn't want to leave the barbershop so soon.Thanks to edelweiss and Vintage books for an advanced ebook. Book publishes August 29,2017.

[WritingReadingSoul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tell me a story, Ernest J. Gaines. One with less than 200 pages. One in which I’m reminded of my childhood summer vacations in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where we would sit on the garry in the evening and eavesdrop on stories shared by our neighbors on their stoops. One in which the barber shop is a holy place that carries on the tradition of news sharing and gossip whispering. A story of poor Southern black men who live in a small Louisiana town, remembering the history of slavery, fighting the racism of their generation, using women and booze and food to draw on small comforts in life. And don’t forget, Mr. Gaines, to introduce a character—a strong black man—who is the sheriff of his family and of his neighborhood without wearing an official badge. One who is a straight shooter and knows the consequences of the black man’s burden in a country that devalues his very existence. Allow him ostentatious self-assurance, staunch persistence, and no nonsense, smooth-talking savvy. Throw in some courtroom drama, side-grabbing humor, a Greek-chorus-like echo of a man who “Amens” the narration of the drama, and a taste of the spicy language of black Louisianans, and I guarantee you will have a winner!
Thanks to Ernest J. Gaines, NetGalley, and the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group for yet another one of your classics to add to my collection.

[Gwen - Chew & Digest Books - · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not often all that excited about short-stories or novellas because, for me, they don't create a full atmosphere and the character development isn't what it could be when the number of pages is so limited.

Not so here. Gaines left me wanting more, He painted a picture of the South, in an era that was before my time, people with personalities that I will most likely never come across, and also showed a wee bit of that transition from Jim Crow to something less like that with more and more white people coming out of their idiotic dark age prejudices and racism.

128 pages was all it took to show me the chat and the walls at a barber, the inside of a courtroom, part of a Sheriff's family tree, and I could go on.

Stunned and stunning doesn't begin to describe this for me.

[Elizabeth☮ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Update:

I started reading this again and only realized I'd already read it when I logged in here to add it to my Currently Reading! Wow. That hasn't happened in years.

A quick enough read that is the story of Brady Sims narrated by those around him. Brady Sims is a decidedly difficult man, but one that earns the respect of those around him by his pure brazenness.

This is a quick read that is mostly told in dialogue between friends at the barbershop. Although short, it touches on racial tensions of the South.

[Cody · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first Gaines, though I’ve gained more Gaines’ since, and the man can plain write. Addictively readable, excising all fringe from atop the surrey. No bullshit, no adornment—just straight hammer tosses at your dome. Steely shit, sure, but beautiful. His is a Brutalist Southern Gothic I will, with time, gladly take to the head in toto.

Yep—the exceptionally rare Steely Toto. God truly does hate us all.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the setting of this book. I only recently learned about the cultural significance of the black barbershop when picking up my son's basketball team mate from one. I was immediately pulled into an intense discussion about Donald Trump. There were about 8 men in the shop and only one was getting his hair cut. My friend told me his father and grandfather had their hair cut there, and now his son had his hair cut there. This story captures the essence of the black barber shop.

Louis Guerin is the reporter on duty at a Louisiana courthouse when Brady Sims shoots his son who was just sentenced to Angola prison. Brady points the gun at the deputies, fires at the ground, and asks them if he can have two hours before they come after him. Louis is ordered by his white boss to get a special interest story about Brady before midnight. Louis, who is black, is welcomed at the local barbershop where black men go for haircuts.

Louis learns all about life in the small town from the loquacious barber. Every time I thought the barber had gone off the rails, “the client with the new haircut” interjected that the story was taking too long, Louis indicated he should be quiet, and we as readers are urged to continue turning pages of a story told by a single narrator. And it’s a good thing we do.

We learn about life in a small town, where old grandmothers need help disciplining teenagers because parents have left town to find work. Finding a job is not easy. Racism is alive and well. We learn all about Brady Sims. We learn the sheriff, Mapes, gives Brady his two hours. But mostly we learn about the culture in black barber shops.

The novella has a couple of surprising twists at the end, though one was foreshadowed and I’m not sure we were meant to be surprised. The other would have floored the town had they known. I was delighted by this story, though it truly was a tragedy, in more ways than one.

[Bobbieshiann · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Brady Sims stood there in that old fades blue jumper, with the smoke still rising from the gun in his hand”.

Brady Sims killed his son in the courtroom as Sheriffs were walking him out after being sentenced to death. The clarity of the crime is not identified until the end of the book but in that courtroom, common folks both Black and white gathered to weigh out the fate of Brady’s son. One of them happened to be a reporter by the name of Louis Guerian. Now working for a newly integrated journal, he is tasked with finding out why Brady Sims killed his son.

This is how the history of Brady Sims and the history of the community comes about. Louis heads to the local barbershop (Felix’s) filled with old man who remember the fields, the war (War World 2), American migration, and the take over of man’s hands to man-made machines for production. Not only do we learn why Brady kills his son but must be reminded that although slavery ended it still festered. The fields still being open for cotton picking and having to be Black and still going around to the whites back porch to find work.

To understand Brady’s decision making you must hear the events from the community as they tell you what kind of man he was through his actions. The book leaves you wondering what you would do if you knew one of your sons were being sentenced to death and headed to Angola prison. Brady is a father, abuser, community helper, and even with the loss of things or people, he does not alter the man he came to be.

[Q · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Good Reads friend wrote a moving review of Ernest Gaines “A Lesson Before Dying” recently. I was inspired to read another book by him. It has been quite a while since I read both “Lessons Before Dying” and “A Gathering of Old Men”. Both were excellent. They directly and honestly talked about aspects of racism in a small Louisiana town and had quite an impact on me. What was said went far beyond the town. It captured the long term effect of racism on people, communities, states and the US. These were period pieces; offered a lot of history of pre-civil rights days thru the stories told. There was a deep sense of place and community created. All of that is also true here in the novella “The Tragedy of Brady Sims” was Gaines’ last book written before his death.

The beginning of Brady Simms is very dramatic. A son is convicted of a crime and will be sentenced to Angola Prison - one of the worst prisons in the USA. His father, Brady Sims, sitting in the back of the court stood and yelled “Boy” and “out of no where” and “like boom” kills him.” And then he fires again into the floor in front of the deputies. He startles them but hurt no one. His intention. The judge and remaining jurors hid behind things. And Brady then says “I need two hours. Then come and get me. “ And leaves the court house. Deputies let him go and later the Sheriff said “that was fine. He’ll get him.” Odd comments.

Who is Brady Sims and why did he kill his son? At first it felt like such an extreme and ruthless act. Heartless. And the initial reactions of Judge and the Sheriff were strange.

A rookie reporter who had left Louisiana to be educated elsewhere because it wasn’t possible to be equally educated there, returns to the state working for a now integrated newspaper office. Those that didn’t leave/migrate did not have such opportunities at all. There is a wonderfully written short chapter (all the chapters are short) following a 28 year old returning to the area trying to find work. It explores the growing of the New Jim Crow. The book shows the brutal impact that incarcerating black men has had on them and subsequent generations.

The reporter is told by his boss to “find out” about the questions that he asked him and come back to him by midnight with a “human interest story”. A waitress suggests that he start his inquiry at a local barbershop.

As different people in the community speak the plot deepens. We hear many different views about Brady Sims and his life and his role in the community as well as learn about how the change from human labor to machinery - tractors - changed farming forever and helped create the migration north after WWII. And how black men fighting in WWII was also a catalyst for the migration.

Gaines is a very skilled writer and his art shows in the dialogues spoken in the barber shop. The stories told about Sims are terrific - tragic and humorous too. My own views on Brady Sims and his son and the killing of his son kept changing with each story told. The way things build up to the end kept me quite engaged. And I won’t say more cause it might be a spoiler.

It’s the art and craft of Gaines writing and the style he chose to use here, the great cast of characters, the issues he choose to talk about, and the delving deeper that in my opinion made this book tight and a good read. It’s a book I will read again because of its craft and how he raised the issues he did.

The form and art of of a novella I find interesting. It is a talent to do it well. It’s something I want to explore more this next year.

As an aside: After finishing this book I listened to an interview with Ernest Gaines at the end of his life. This leaving Louisiana and going elsewhere (Northern California) for education and more equality was what he did as a teen. There were no libraries where he grew up. And that the libraries were free, the family didn’t have a lot of money, had a huge impact on him wanting to write. The town he created in this novella was similar to the town he grew up in. And the cast based on people he knew. Not an autobiography , but it had some elements of it he said. His career took off when he moved back to Louisiana to the community he grew up in and lived and wrote there half a year. It may be that that made this sense of place come so alive.

[Jovana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unsurprisingly, I really enjoyed this newest release from one of my all-time favourite authors.

With Gaines, you don't get beaten over the head with themes and symbols. You get this nuanced, seemingly soft but impressively hard-hitting treatment of issues that don't need to be spelled out when they can be felt. I love him for that. He paints a picture, makes you feel at home in his story. Then he makes you feel and think all at once.

I've said it before about him, but his dialogue is the best written dialogue I have ever read. I am continually amazed at how he balances colloquial, natural voices with meaning and ambiance. He's my biggest inspiration as a writer in this regard; and, in fact, most people who read my writing comment on the dialogue as its best trait. (I learned from the master.)

I will say, this book wasn't as strong as his other books I've read, though I can understand that someone's tenth published novel is probably going to be less "inspired" than their first few. The plot was definitely the weakest I've read so far, and his books are never really that plot-heavy. Still, I can't not love this world he has created; for some reason I can't explain, I feel not only drawn to but part of it.

[Noel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This short gem of a book opens with a father shooting his son in a courthouse. The journalist on the beat is told to find a human interest side to the story by midnight. He wanders into the local barbershop where locals go to get haircuts and to get the latest gossip and there, over a period of several hours and several participants, he learns the story of Brady Sims.

At the heart of the story which takes place in Louisiana, lies race, hardship, lack of education, and deep seated hatred. In a place where whites who associate with blacks are called names and shunned, where a disproportionate number of blacks are sent to the infamous prison, Angola, Brady Sims is the disciplinarian in town. Above all, he wants to avoid anyone from having to suffer a stay in the inhumane prison -- and therein lies the gist of the story.

In a few pages, and mostly through the conversation of the men at the barbershop, the story unfolds.

I did have a hard time following parts of the conversation and I have to wonder if this book would be better listened to than eye-read. Well worth the couple of hours it took to read - almost as good as A Lesson Before Dying.

[Gianni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brady Sims è un anziano nero di una comunità rurale della Louisiana che uccide il proprio figlio in tribunale, dopo la lettura della sentenza che lo condanna alla sedia elettrica per una tentata rapina in banca conclusa in tragedia. I fatti sono subito rivelati e si intuisce l’epilogo, ma il pregio della storia sta nella sua costruzione.
Louis Guerin, il primo dei due narratori che utilizza Gaines, è un giovane afroamericano ritornato al paese di origine per far pratica di giornalismo nella redazione del settimanale locale; Guerin è in tribunale quando Brady Sims uccide il figlio e si allontana dopo aver ottenuto due ore di tempo prima di lasciarsi arrestare, ”Vidi il vecchio avvicinarsi sempre più a dove mi trovavo. Poi ci trovammo faccia a faccia, a circa mezzo metro di distanza. Lo conoscevo da una vita, ma non gli ero mai stato così vicino. […] Continuò a fissarmi, come se volesse che capissi cosa aveva fatto o perché l’avesse fatto. Ma in quel momento non riuscivo neanche a pensare. Ero a malapena in grado di respirare . Tuttavia non riuscivo a distogliere lo sguardo. Quando non trovò traccia di risposta nel mio viso, guardò di nuovo i due ufficiali e indietreggiò lentamente fuori dall’aula del tribunale, con la grande pistola ancora in mano, senza puntarla in alcuna direzione in particolare.”
Guerin è giovane e pur essendo conosciuto nella comunità nera, è fuori dai meccanismi e dalle relazioni che la regolano. Capire le ragioni che sottendono all’atto compiuto da Sims, e scriverne, significa entrare in sintonia con l’oralità, gli aneddoti, le storie che tramandano e perpetuano il senso della comunità. Sono gli anziani a possedere le chiavi ma non tutti possono accedere a quel patrimonio. Guerin, che deve scrivere un pezzo sul caso, ”Mr Abe scriverà della sparatoria. Vuole che io elabori un articolo, una storia di vita vissuta”, viene indirizzato nel locale del barbiere dove ci si riunisce spesso più per parlare che per radersi o accorciare i capelli, ”’…Hai pensato a Felix, il barbiere? Ci sono sempre un mucchio di chiacchieroni laggiù’. […] La maggior parte dei clienti di Lucas Felix erano uomini anziani, quasi mai donne, e nessuno più giovane di me, che ho ventotto anni. Vado lì principalmente per ascoltare i vecchi parlare, ma i sembrerebbe ingiusto semplicemente starmene lì seduto ad ascoltare senza mai farmi un taglio di capelli, quindi ogni tanto Lucas mi dà una spuntata intorno al collo”
Il negozio del barbiere diventa il setting autorizzato della storia, un po’ come il bar lo era per Il racconto del barista, di Ivan Doig; è Frank Jamison ad essere indicato a ricostruire ciò che è alla base del gesto di Sims, ”’Qualcosa del genere doveva succedere prima o poi’ disse Jamison. ‘Ha frustato i bambini pur di tenerli lontani dall’Angola. Alcune persone anziane preferivano vedere i loro bambini morti piuttosto che là dentro. Perché anche se ne fossero mai venuti fuori, sarebbero stati comunque morti dentro, … come spezzati’”. Jamison è solo il portavoce, non narra per sé, chiede sempre conferma agli altri membri della comunità e deve essere anche sicuro che l’articolo di Guerin peschi correttamente da quanto viene raccontato, ”Conosco la sua famiglia. Li conosco da sempre. Ma lui? Pensi che sappia ascoltare, scegliere le parole giuste e non scrivere ciò che non dovrebbe scrivere?”
Il racconto si fa corale, con il tono delle conversazioni tra più persone, spesso spezzettato, talvolta interrotto da domande o interventi che non c’entrano con la storia, si ha quasi l’impressione di essere presenti. Dalla ricostruzione emergono la povertà della comunità, la mancanza di lavoro e di alternative, il contrasto tra l’ambiente urbano e quello rurale, la segregazione e il razzismo anche nelle forme introiettate e risputate fuori come naturali, ma resta tutto tra le righe, senza moti di protesta o di indignazione, è la storia della comunità.
Al secondo narratore, lo sceriffo Mapes che racconta di Sims "dall’altra parte" e che pensa dentro di sé ”Nel mio cuore c’è buio. La sua pelle è nera, la mia è bianca e lui è mio amico”, una figura che ricorda quella dello sceriffo Hayden in Montana 1948, sono riservate un pugno di pagine dense, quelle che portano all’epilogo della storia di cui Mapes ha un presentimento, ”E avrei dovuto saperlo. Anche prima di sentirlo, avrei dovuto saperlo. Sì, avrei dovuto saperlo. Perché? Perché conoscevo Brady Sims.”
È un libro breve, ben costruito, che utilizza una chiave di lettura originale; segnalo l’ottima postfazione di Nicola Manuppelli a chiusura.

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely love Mr. Gaines writing! He's the quintessential storyteller. I love how he gets right into his story, and doesn't waste any time moving the story along. I'm so glad I decided to read this one as my book for this year to honor Black History month. It's always great to read a wide variety of authors.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. I loved the small town, everybody knows each other feeling. Quick read and a page turner for me. I keep thinking of the movie old film In the Heat of the Night and how this gave story gave me similar feelings. A good book to end 2017.

[ColumbusReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

A brand spanking new novella by the great Ernest J. Gaines. Yep, short and sweet and i feel like picking it up and starting it all over again.

[Kathrina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novella contains one of the best studies in dialogue I have ever read. It's a tribute to storytelling as much as it is a meaningful and compelling story.

[shauna · Rating 3 out of 5]

the real tragedy is not Brady Sims as a person, but what comes of him as a result of the society that let him down. this one will really make you think! 3.75

[Nicole · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this book, but I found myself struggling to get through it. The barber shop scene had me thinking, "get to the point already"! And the ending, well, that was predictable.
Brady Sims as a character was good and bad. He helped people in his community with food and parenting, but did not think twice about putting his hands on a woman. Women were almost disposable to him, yet he was still well respected.
I do think Sims represents more than just a character though. At the end of the book, Gaines writes, "He was a man some people would say was too hard. He lived in hard times- and the burden we put on him wasn't easy. Yes, we.... If we had done more, his burden wouldn't have been so heavy" (112-113. In these lines, I believe Sims is representative of the black community. They have lived in hard times, taken out of slavery and expected to function in society, yet without an education to do so. Had they been more prepared for life outside of slavery, things could have been less of a burden.
The novella also shows the relationship between two men of two races. Mapes, the white sheriff, announces to the press, the love and respect he had for Sims, the black man. At a time when a white man could be accused of being a "n*****-lover", he shows that none of that matters. All that mattered was that Sims was his friend and that he was going to miss him.

[Rosa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the story of a man’s life told by his friends in a small town barbershop.
The story starts with a courtroom murder by Brady Sims. One of the witnesses is cub reporter Louis Guerin, who is then assigned to write a “human interest” story about the Brady Sims. In an effort to find out who Brady Sims is, Louis spends the day listening to the men at the neighborhood barbershop talk and reminisce. As different men offer vingnettes and memories about Brady, a portrait begins to emerge. And what a story they weave! It’s all here, humor, history, family drama, and small town life, all in 114 pages!
In the end, we get a picture of a southern town trying to deal with the virulent racism the best they can, all while trying to keep their children and families safe. It’s also the portrait of one man, true to his values and his word. Kudos to Mr. Gaines for a thoroughly engrossing book. My only complaint is that I wanted to know more.

[Felicia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brady Sims ask for two hours before the sheriff arrest him for shooting his own son in court; a son who is being sent to Angola for a crime he committed. In those two hours we hear story after story about Brady Sims and his life from the all knowing men at the barbershop. The men at the shop know how to tell a story. Some parts are humorous and some are tragic.

So much is packed into this novella: race, poverty, family and I dare say a level of friendship and respect between 2 men of different races.


Reading a book by Ernest Gaines is like stepping back in time in my home state of Louisiana. It wasn't difficult to imagine the scenes in the book.
I will definitely be adding a physical copy of this book to my shelf.

Thank you Netgalley and Knopf Doubleday Publishing for the digital copy of this book - all opinions are my own.