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Billy
Albert French's harrowing debut novel of 10-year-old Billy Lee Turner, convicted and executed for murdering a white girl in Baines, Mississippi, in 1937, is an unsentimental and ultimately heartrending vision of racial injustice. "A work of art . . . Billy never lets up, not for one minute. . . . magnificent".--New York Daily News.
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First published October 1, 1993
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About the author
Albert French
15 books12 followersAlbert French is an American author and publisher whose works, mainly focusing on the rural life of African Americans, are known for their intensity and distinctive style and have been translated into several languages.
French was born in Pittsburgh in 1943 and joined the Marine Corps when he was 20. His experiences there are described in his book 'Patches of Fire.' After returning home, French worked as a photographer for the Pittsburgh Post Gazette before publishing the Pittsburgh Preview for twelve years. He continues to reside in Pittsburgh.
French was born in Pittsburgh in 1943 and joined the Marine Corps when he was 20. His experiences there are described in his book 'Patches of Fire.' After returning home, French worked as a photographer for the Pittsburgh Post Gazette before publishing the Pittsburgh Preview for twelve years. He continues to reside in Pittsburgh.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 104 reviews
August 10, 2015
"Billy lays limp in chair, his face and head still smoking from the fires that burned his body and soul."
Whew.
[*wipes tears*]
The last 12 pages of this book describe a truly terrible scene--the state execution of a ten year old child. Truly the most powerful stuff I've ever read before--and I've read a lot in my lifetime. We only know Billy for less than 250 pages, but, man...I will remember him forever.
I loved the writing here. Loved the style, the beautiful dialect, it fit perfectly with the story. I did not find it to be problematic at all. Perhaps it's because my father is from Mississippi and I actually know people who speak the way in which the story is told. Either way, once I got into the rhythm and the cadence of the dialect (by the fifth or sixth page), I loved the words all the more. This novel was an easy read but a hard one, it's brutally honest in its portrayal of race relations in the Deep South in 1937. Every emotion possible I experienced with this book--sorrow, tenderness, despair, anger.
I also loved the fact that even though you empathize deeply with Billy, the story is told with a third person objective point of view. Thoughts of each character aren't elaborated on, but you understand the points of view of several people involved in this tragedy--the Sheriff, Billy's mother, the family of the murdered victim, his defense attorney, and so on. Very interesting and unique storytelling here.
Oddly enough, I've actually owned this book since 2002 when I found it in a bargain bin in Madison, Wisconsin. It sat on my highest shelf in my office gathering dust until I finally decided this past week to clean off my shelf and I read it. Now I'll never let this book go. Loved this!
Whew.
[*wipes tears*]
The last 12 pages of this book describe a truly terrible scene--the state execution of a ten year old child. Truly the most powerful stuff I've ever read before--and I've read a lot in my lifetime. We only know Billy for less than 250 pages, but, man...I will remember him forever.
I loved the writing here. Loved the style, the beautiful dialect, it fit perfectly with the story. I did not find it to be problematic at all. Perhaps it's because my father is from Mississippi and I actually know people who speak the way in which the story is told. Either way, once I got into the rhythm and the cadence of the dialect (by the fifth or sixth page), I loved the words all the more. This novel was an easy read but a hard one, it's brutally honest in its portrayal of race relations in the Deep South in 1937. Every emotion possible I experienced with this book--sorrow, tenderness, despair, anger.
I also loved the fact that even though you empathize deeply with Billy, the story is told with a third person objective point of view. Thoughts of each character aren't elaborated on, but you understand the points of view of several people involved in this tragedy--the Sheriff, Billy's mother, the family of the murdered victim, his defense attorney, and so on. Very interesting and unique storytelling here.
Oddly enough, I've actually owned this book since 2002 when I found it in a bargain bin in Madison, Wisconsin. It sat on my highest shelf in my office gathering dust until I finally decided this past week to clean off my shelf and I read it. Now I'll never let this book go. Loved this!
March 17, 2016
One of the saddest, most disturbing stories ever written. Great book though.
June 12, 2018
One of the saddest books I've ever read. But beautifully written. French's narration is lyrical; his characters' vernacular dialogue authentic.
November 11, 2014
I'm sorry I couldn't get on board with this one at all. I'm not sure what the author wanted me to feel other than pity. Mostly I was bothered by the dialect which was terrible to read. It seemed as if the white character's dialect was written a little better than the black character's dialect, and I couldn't understand why because both were poor. Be that as it may, I found Billy an unsympathetic character and just wanted it to be over. Sorry this was not a good read for me and I was had high hopes for it.
March 21, 2019
An unapologetic look at rabid racism in 1930's Mississippi. Not for the faint of heart or those that gag at protracted child abuse.
January 11, 2025
This was harrowing but at least blessedly short. It's not based on a true story per se, but feels like it might have been because French was a journalist and in this debut crafts careful pen portraits of the Black and white members of a Mississippi community, moving between houses, jail cells and a courtroom. Billy Lee Turner, aged 10, is convicted of killing a white girl, Lori Pasko, in August 1937. There is nuance to the case in that it was in self-defense because she attacked him for trespassing at her family's pond.
The friend who chose this for book club had found out about it from a Graham Norton podcast, so it's something of a rediscovered classic. She'd described it to me as a shorter To Kill a Mockingbird, and there is indeed a good-hearted white lawyer, Wilbur Braxton, who defends Billy and makes a passionate plea for the jury to save his life. But it felt clear to me from the outset that Billy was doomed, and that sense of dread only mounted as things went on.
The book is narrated perhaps by a particular townsperson or by the community in aggregate. I kept being back-footed by the narrator sometimes embracing the dialect the others use and other times adopting a more formal and authoritative voice - lovely passages about the effect of Time (a personified force like fate), for instance. There didn't seem to be a rhyme or reason as to how the register was chosen, and there were also jarring tense changes - the mostly present-tense narration would be interrupted by occasional past-tense phrases. The dialect was a challenge and sometimes came across as unintentionally comic. (Two book club members listened to the audiobook and I expect that was probably the better mode.) I also found the story increasingly histrionic.
Cinder's hopeless love for her son Billy (and the interesting secret of her parentage) were perhaps the most touching elements; French actually ended up writing a sequel about her.
This reminded me a fair bit of Their Eyes Were Watching God in its loving focus on a Black community and use of dialect. But it was an inconsistent and at times brutal read. I would recommend Mudbound by Hillary Jordan instead.
The friend who chose this for book club had found out about it from a Graham Norton podcast, so it's something of a rediscovered classic. She'd described it to me as a shorter To Kill a Mockingbird, and there is indeed a good-hearted white lawyer, Wilbur Braxton, who defends Billy and makes a passionate plea for the jury to save his life. But it felt clear to me from the outset that Billy was doomed, and that sense of dread only mounted as things went on.
The book is narrated perhaps by a particular townsperson or by the community in aggregate. I kept being back-footed by the narrator sometimes embracing the dialect the others use and other times adopting a more formal and authoritative voice - lovely passages about the effect of Time (a personified force like fate), for instance. There didn't seem to be a rhyme or reason as to how the register was chosen, and there were also jarring tense changes - the mostly present-tense narration would be interrupted by occasional past-tense phrases. The dialect was a challenge and sometimes came across as unintentionally comic. (Two book club members listened to the audiobook and I expect that was probably the better mode.) I also found the story increasingly histrionic.
Cinder's hopeless love for her son Billy (and the interesting secret of her parentage) were perhaps the most touching elements; French actually ended up writing a sequel about her.
This reminded me a fair bit of Their Eyes Were Watching God in its loving focus on a Black community and use of dialect. But it was an inconsistent and at times brutal read. I would recommend Mudbound by Hillary Jordan instead.
September 22, 2021
A compelling story that exposes the unthinking racial hatred existing in Mississippi in 1937 and the consequences of that hatred on the inhabitants of the small town of Banes. The story centers around the impulsive stabbing and killing of a young girl by 10 year old Billy Lee Turner. It is narrated a fast pace by a narrator who adopts the dialogue of the black and white communities of the time. The reader feels the racism of most of the white community and the daily interchanges of the uneducated blacks. Each scene has it own intensity but the final chapters set in Death Row are particularly strong.
It has been described as a novel that exposes inhumanity legalized under the name of justice. A very accurate synopsis for a novel without a hero but with many victims.
It has been described as a novel that exposes inhumanity legalized under the name of justice. A very accurate synopsis for a novel without a hero but with many victims.
November 11, 2018
A difficult book to read. Ten year old Billy Lee is attacked by an older white girl for swimming in her pond. She is an unusually tough girl and knows she can whoop him easily, teach him a lesson he won't forget.
What she doesn't know is that Billy has a knife in his pocket. In panic and self defense, he stabs her. She dies. He is hunted down, arrested, tried and convicted as an adult. Even though Billy is only a child and the homicide was accidental, he is convicted of First Degree Murder and sentenced to the Electric Chair.
This novel is fiction but it is based upon a far too common reality in the USA system, children of color being executed as adults.
Albert French does a good job of humanizing all the characters in this story and yet allowing the full horror of this tragic injustice to come through.
One concern I read about in another review with which I agree: French lays out the chain of events as if they were inevitable. At every point, the actions of Billy, his mother, their Black community and White advocates to prevent this tragedy seem poorly planned, reactive, feeble and doomed to failure. It is as if Billy were predestined to die. Now at times this may be how it seems to youth of color who are raised in a racist nation that has criminalized the color of their skin long before they were born. However, that cannot be the end of the story.
We thick headed White readers may miss the point altogether. Injustice and evil are never inevitable. Whether Black or White, we may choose to succumb to it. If so, we become accomplices.
This Judicial System that kills little Billy Lee so heartlessly is the same system our tax dollars support today. These tragedies happen everyday, not just back in the Days of Jim Crow, but today, not just in Mississippi but all over the United States. We are the system.
We White parents have a difficult time putting ourselves into the shoes of Black parents. It is a very dark place to be, even if only in our imaginations. If it were our babies being shafted by the system, demonized in the schools, shot down in the streets, caged like animals, we would take appropriate action to protect them, whatever it takes. They say, "Desperate times call for desperate measures."
Of course, being a long oppressed minority, People of Color in the USA must be more strategic than we must be. They have to consider the backlash. White public opinion is not on their side. So they find ways to protect their children the best they can. They resist, somtimes openly, most times in more covert manners. Sometimes their efforts succeed. Too often, they don't, but they resist. They resist and resist and resist. They never give up hope. How can they?
If ever things are going to be different, White folks will have to start listening to Black folks. We will have to start standing in solidarity with them to change the system. Black people do not need White people to save them, but it wouldn't hurt if a majority of White folk would stand with them on their side, just like we would if White children were being mistreated by the system.
If you are a White reader who wants to do more, I recommend the books of Angela Davis, James Baldwin and Mumia abu Jamal to start. Also, the plays of August Wilson are fantastic. Go to see them whenever you can, but don't be afraid to pick them up at the library and read them. If you are a Christian, James H Cone's book, THE CROSS AND THE LYNCHING TREE is excellent.
What she doesn't know is that Billy has a knife in his pocket. In panic and self defense, he stabs her. She dies. He is hunted down, arrested, tried and convicted as an adult. Even though Billy is only a child and the homicide was accidental, he is convicted of First Degree Murder and sentenced to the Electric Chair.
This novel is fiction but it is based upon a far too common reality in the USA system, children of color being executed as adults.
Albert French does a good job of humanizing all the characters in this story and yet allowing the full horror of this tragic injustice to come through.
One concern I read about in another review with which I agree: French lays out the chain of events as if they were inevitable. At every point, the actions of Billy, his mother, their Black community and White advocates to prevent this tragedy seem poorly planned, reactive, feeble and doomed to failure. It is as if Billy were predestined to die. Now at times this may be how it seems to youth of color who are raised in a racist nation that has criminalized the color of their skin long before they were born. However, that cannot be the end of the story.
We thick headed White readers may miss the point altogether. Injustice and evil are never inevitable. Whether Black or White, we may choose to succumb to it. If so, we become accomplices.
This Judicial System that kills little Billy Lee so heartlessly is the same system our tax dollars support today. These tragedies happen everyday, not just back in the Days of Jim Crow, but today, not just in Mississippi but all over the United States. We are the system.
We White parents have a difficult time putting ourselves into the shoes of Black parents. It is a very dark place to be, even if only in our imaginations. If it were our babies being shafted by the system, demonized in the schools, shot down in the streets, caged like animals, we would take appropriate action to protect them, whatever it takes. They say, "Desperate times call for desperate measures."
Of course, being a long oppressed minority, People of Color in the USA must be more strategic than we must be. They have to consider the backlash. White public opinion is not on their side. So they find ways to protect their children the best they can. They resist, somtimes openly, most times in more covert manners. Sometimes their efforts succeed. Too often, they don't, but they resist. They resist and resist and resist. They never give up hope. How can they?
If ever things are going to be different, White folks will have to start listening to Black folks. We will have to start standing in solidarity with them to change the system. Black people do not need White people to save them, but it wouldn't hurt if a majority of White folk would stand with them on their side, just like we would if White children were being mistreated by the system.
If you are a White reader who wants to do more, I recommend the books of Angela Davis, James Baldwin and Mumia abu Jamal to start. Also, the plays of August Wilson are fantastic. Go to see them whenever you can, but don't be afraid to pick them up at the library and read them. If you are a Christian, James H Cone's book, THE CROSS AND THE LYNCHING TREE is excellent.
September 8, 2021
A terribly sad story that is accurately written. One feels as though they are a invisible observer. Unfortunately, this racism and cruelty happened to many African Americans and can still happen to this day anywhere in the world. An accident can prove lethal. We would hope it would be known as just being an accident especially if it was a child comiting the crime. Unfortunately, this was not so in Billy's case and it was due to the colour of his skin. A short story that should be read by everyone. Only heard about from he Graham Norton book club and I am glad I read it.
April 29, 2019
1994 notebook: a black 10 year old is accused of murdering a white girl in 30s Mississippi. Predictable and a bit thin, somehow.
February 24, 2015
Every once in a while, you come across a book that emotionally guts you. It makes you angry, sad, and happy all at the same time, all for different reasons. When I read this book, I was angry this had actually happened. I was sad, not for the characters, but for the people behind them. I was happy- very happy that I chose to pick this up on one of my thrift store jaunts.
One of the things I love about this book is it doesn't portray just one side of the story. It would've been easier to say the white people in this tale were inhuman monsters and didn't deserve to be shown as humans: what kind of person could allow a little boy to be executed, period? Every character within this story has their place, but they all are painted with flaws and strengths.
The folksy way this book is written takes some getting used to. Although I quickly adjusted, some people on Goodreads felt this book was too dramatic with it, but with this book's plot being based on a true story, I didn't feel it was too dramatic. It's kind of odd that I felt that way with Beloved, yet this book felt more real (possibly the lack of heavy magical realism).
Another standout in this book is the setting. I've never been to a small town in Mississippi circa 1937 (my time machine isn't exactly functional yet) but if I had, I believe it would be a lot like Mr. French describes. Even beyond the visual descriptions, he describes what it sounds like, smells like, to make you feel like you're there. To me, that takes a lot of talent.
Although Billy does rank as one of my favorite characters, his mother Cinder is my favorite of this book. When she is described, you can see her so clearly- her posture, her expression, everything - that she stays with you when the novel is finished.
Here's an example of that:
~Billy by Albert French, page 64 paperback edition
Billy is a novel you wish was entirely fictional, and had no link to real life events. I would even say it's impossible to read it cover to cover without shedding a tear. But by recounting and humanizing the people within, Mr. French has truly made a lasting impression on me. I recommend this book to everyone.
Rating: 5 of 5 Stars for an extraordinarily powerful book about racial injustice.
As posted on my blog, Victorian Soul Critiques.
One of the things I love about this book is it doesn't portray just one side of the story. It would've been easier to say the white people in this tale were inhuman monsters and didn't deserve to be shown as humans: what kind of person could allow a little boy to be executed, period? Every character within this story has their place, but they all are painted with flaws and strengths.
The folksy way this book is written takes some getting used to. Although I quickly adjusted, some people on Goodreads felt this book was too dramatic with it, but with this book's plot being based on a true story, I didn't feel it was too dramatic. It's kind of odd that I felt that way with Beloved, yet this book felt more real (possibly the lack of heavy magical realism).
Another standout in this book is the setting. I've never been to a small town in Mississippi circa 1937 (my time machine isn't exactly functional yet) but if I had, I believe it would be a lot like Mr. French describes. Even beyond the visual descriptions, he describes what it sounds like, smells like, to make you feel like you're there. To me, that takes a lot of talent.
Although Billy does rank as one of my favorite characters, his mother Cinder is my favorite of this book. When she is described, you can see her so clearly- her posture, her expression, everything - that she stays with you when the novel is finished.
Here's an example of that:
"Cinder pushes herself up, pushes Katey away, and throws her eyes back into the sheriff's face. Her hair hangs over her cheeks, blood seeps from her lip and nose, the skin on her cheekbone is scraped raw, but still she stares."
~Billy by Albert French, page 64 paperback edition
Billy is a novel you wish was entirely fictional, and had no link to real life events. I would even say it's impossible to read it cover to cover without shedding a tear. But by recounting and humanizing the people within, Mr. French has truly made a lasting impression on me. I recommend this book to everyone.
Rating: 5 of 5 Stars for an extraordinarily powerful book about racial injustice.
As posted on my blog, Victorian Soul Critiques.
July 21, 2017
Beautiful, elegant, poignant. It will stay with me forever.
April 11, 2018
Wowwwwww this book was amazing!
Check out my review here:
https://bibliophileonabudget.wordpres...
Check out my review here:
https://bibliophileonabudget.wordpres...
October 20, 2018
If you ever wanted to see the most horrifying effect of racism imaginable, look no further. Unforgettable
February 16, 2021
Hard to read but impactful and important
July 18, 2017
Het duurde even voordat ik in het verhaal zat, maar man, wat heftig! Ik had heel erg met Billy te doen en hoopte het allerbeste voor hem.
Ik vond wel dat er tussendoor veel geschreven werd wat weinig toevoeging aan het verhaal gaf. Maar vooral de laatste hoofdstukken liet ik het boek niet meer los.
Ik vond wel dat er tussendoor veel geschreven werd wat weinig toevoeging aan het verhaal gaf. Maar vooral de laatste hoofdstukken liet ik het boek niet meer los.
November 24, 2022
This is one of the saddest books,but one of the best books I’ve read. Billy’s story is is told honestly, straightforwardly, and compassionately. Honest and real. A tragic accident sends a ten year old child to death Row.
April 16, 2025
Sehr, sehr trauriges Buch, was sehr gut mit wichtigen politischen Themen und vor allem dem bedingunslosen Hass begründet in Rassismus umgeht. Eigentlich hatten sie nichts gegen Billy, aber wenn es dem Narrativ hilft, machen sie trotzdem keinen Halt.
January 29, 2025
Didn’t want to get to the end of this books. Just horrible
February 22, 2025
A harsh and sad, most disturbing stories ever written. Great book though with a great story in it.
Want to read
July 3, 2025recommendation from ms mills lol
July 10, 2022
I echo the words of the reviewer who said, “ Although I only knew Billy Lee Turner for all an too brief 214 pages, I will mourn his death for the rest of my life.” Billy is a ten year old boy executed for murder in 1937 Mississippi.
Albert French.s prose is stark and powerful. The story is finely nuanced by the many exquisitely drawn characters who witness the drama unfolding. Unsentimental, French paints a clear picture of the horrors of racism as it still plays out in the US.
Albert French.s prose is stark and powerful. The story is finely nuanced by the many exquisitely drawn characters who witness the drama unfolding. Unsentimental, French paints a clear picture of the horrors of racism as it still plays out in the US.
August 26, 2019
Reading this book back to back with The Nickel Boys is quite a sobering duo. In French’s book every word and sentence is deliberate. The story of a 10 year old boy on trial for 1st degree murder and eventually executed (its on the cover so no spoilers here) leaves the reader emotionally gutted. It is only in recent times Bryan Stevenson, in one of his Supreme Court wins, successfully argued for the abolition of child executions. Unfortunately that did not reverse all those that occurred before. This novel unsparingly presents the detail of the trial and execution of a child. A broad swath of individuals are portrayed and it is impossible to read this book and not feel anger, revulsion, fear, compassion and an entire range of emotions directed at the actions of the characters. This is American literature at its finest. This book is a league above To Kill a Mockingbird in its portrayal of Jim Crow justice.
April 2, 2012
I cannot say enough good things about the way this book was written. Billy Lee Turner is a 10 year old boy who lives in the South during the late 1930's. He gets convicted and executed for a tragic accident where he killed a white girl who was bullying him. This book is so intense because of the racial tension in the South during that time, and a poor little boy who doesn't even realize what he did was wrong, and just wants to go home. He was wrongly executed at such a young age, but there was nothing anyone could, or would do about it. It's heartbreaking and very realistic.
http://www.hoteatsandcoolreads.com/20...
http://www.hoteatsandcoolreads.com/20...
March 26, 2010
Billy, is the story of ten-year-old Billy Lee Turner who strays into the white area of his little Southern town with another boy in the 1930's. They are immediately set upon by two white teenagers who become enraged at the sight of black kids wading in a backyard pond. Attempting to protect himself, Billy stabs one of the teenagers. When the teenager dies, the entire white community thirsts for vengeance.
"Albert French's novel ... is told in the voice of an anonymous, omniscient narrator whose tough, earthy dialect vividly paints this ugly little place."
Loaned to pop
"Albert French's novel ... is told in the voice of an anonymous, omniscient narrator whose tough, earthy dialect vividly paints this ugly little place."
Loaned to pop
January 24, 2015
French was, at one time or another, a monumental inspiration in my life. On the other hand, I have always appreciated how artistically he mastered his craft; his true portrayal of the African American experience and culture; and the proper use of vernacular language in his writing that brings his characters to life to tell an alluring story.
October 10, 2007
I didn't really sympathize with anybody in this book; on the contrary I felt like the characters were written for me to pity, and that just didn't work for me. This was no To Kill A Mockingbird, or In Cold Blood.
June 25, 2021
A story about a 10 year old boy convicted of the murder of a white girl in Mississippi in 1937. It depicts racism in America and how he was tried as an adult (despite the pleas of his defense lawyer) in an adult court and sentenced to death.
April 15, 2008
raw, incensing, beautiful. i'll never read it again.
January 5, 2016
This book broke my heart. I was in tears by the end. Beautifully written but so sad.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 104 reviews