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The Legend of Quito Road
The future seems to hold limited possibilities for Son Erby. The African-American child of a farm laborer in 1930s Tennessee, his fate seems as certain as the sunset at day's end. But when his father takes him to work at the Coleman farm and hands down the secret to making corn liquor, everything changes.
Moving from the shaded parlors of the wealthy Sawyer clan to the illegal activities in the woods along the Mississippi river, this perceptive novel explores the roots of racism, and the dangerous power of secrets that will shatter every taboo in a sleepy little town caught between the past and the future. Beginning with Son's simple plan to make his fortune with illicit whiskey, and speeding toward an explosive climax that will expose the twisted roots of his family tree, The Legend of Quito Road is a look at a bygone time, the sobering echoes of which can still be heard today.
Moving from the shaded parlors of the wealthy Sawyer clan to the illegal activities in the woods along the Mississippi river, this perceptive novel explores the roots of racism, and the dangerous power of secrets that will shatter every taboo in a sleepy little town caught between the past and the future. Beginning with Son's simple plan to make his fortune with illicit whiskey, and speeding toward an explosive climax that will expose the twisted roots of his family tree, The Legend of Quito Road is a look at a bygone time, the sobering echoes of which can still be heard today.
- GenresHistorical Fiction
384 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2006
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32 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
July 14, 2020
The Legend of Quito Road is a multi-generational tale rooted in 1930's Shelby County, Tennessee. Legacies from the slave and antebellum eras reveal familial relationships that cross racial lines and produce enough secrets to fill Victoria' s closet.
The legend refers to a runaway slave who took money from his owners. The slave felt he was entitled to the money for his services as a distiller and from the owners selling his family. He eludes his captures by hiding during the day and only emerges at night earning the title of the "Ghost of Quito Road." Ironically, the legend is seemingly reborn via Gillam Hale, a renowned bootlegger whose skill at the still makes him a legend in his own time. Born free to parents who were free, he is kidnapped and forced to "cook" on command for his owners while they enjoy all the profits from his labor. He becomes embittered; flees, but is recaptured on a fateful, rainy night. Hale narrowly escapes the noose but during the struggle, one of his pursuers is not so lucky and an untimely death occurs.
In an abrupt transition, Hale is pretty much dropped from the story. We then meet Hale's sixty year old sharecropper son (Gill Erby) and teenaged grandson (Son Erby). The book then delves into the complicated racial disparities of the townsfolk and their families. Even with the supplemental family histories (tree diagram) that were provided in the back of the book, it was still very confusing to keep track of the familial relationships. At some point I took additional notes to keep it straight but abandoned the effort and kept reading on faith that it would become clearer as I kept reading.
As mentioned earlier, from this reader's perspective, there seemed to be some guesswork required to fill plot holes. For example, how after killing a white man, Hale surviveS seemingly in the same town to father children and pass his bootlegging skills to his son. Another drawback - the author spent pages on inconsequential passages (how to build a barbecue pit, how to build a still, the mash recipe, etc), but would quickly breeze over key plot components. Another point of concern - there was a LOT going on (jealous spouses, infidelity, bribery, envy, and murder), but when the same "twist" was applied twice, the author lost a point for creativity.
The story's flow was a bit disjointed and there were some choppy starts and stops at the chapter breaks. I did not find the characters endearing, in fact, a few were so one-dimensional and underdeveloped I questioned what purpose or value they added to the story. Nonetheless from a drama-filled perspective, the book itself was interesting enough to keep me reading. I wanted to see where the author was taking me and how the story would end.
I would recommend this book to patient readers who are willing to overlook (or tolerate) the technical glitches and simply enjoy the story.
The legend refers to a runaway slave who took money from his owners. The slave felt he was entitled to the money for his services as a distiller and from the owners selling his family. He eludes his captures by hiding during the day and only emerges at night earning the title of the "Ghost of Quito Road." Ironically, the legend is seemingly reborn via Gillam Hale, a renowned bootlegger whose skill at the still makes him a legend in his own time. Born free to parents who were free, he is kidnapped and forced to "cook" on command for his owners while they enjoy all the profits from his labor. He becomes embittered; flees, but is recaptured on a fateful, rainy night. Hale narrowly escapes the noose but during the struggle, one of his pursuers is not so lucky and an untimely death occurs.
In an abrupt transition, Hale is pretty much dropped from the story. We then meet Hale's sixty year old sharecropper son (Gill Erby) and teenaged grandson (Son Erby). The book then delves into the complicated racial disparities of the townsfolk and their families. Even with the supplemental family histories (tree diagram) that were provided in the back of the book, it was still very confusing to keep track of the familial relationships. At some point I took additional notes to keep it straight but abandoned the effort and kept reading on faith that it would become clearer as I kept reading.
As mentioned earlier, from this reader's perspective, there seemed to be some guesswork required to fill plot holes. For example, how after killing a white man, Hale surviveS seemingly in the same town to father children and pass his bootlegging skills to his son. Another drawback - the author spent pages on inconsequential passages (how to build a barbecue pit, how to build a still, the mash recipe, etc), but would quickly breeze over key plot components. Another point of concern - there was a LOT going on (jealous spouses, infidelity, bribery, envy, and murder), but when the same "twist" was applied twice, the author lost a point for creativity.
The story's flow was a bit disjointed and there were some choppy starts and stops at the chapter breaks. I did not find the characters endearing, in fact, a few were so one-dimensional and underdeveloped I questioned what purpose or value they added to the story. Nonetheless from a drama-filled perspective, the book itself was interesting enough to keep me reading. I wanted to see where the author was taking me and how the story would end.
I would recommend this book to patient readers who are willing to overlook (or tolerate) the technical glitches and simply enjoy the story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 22, 2008
This freshman work is AWESOME - I loved the story and folk culture surrounding the life of the Hale family - Strong Black men whose "trade" of good ensured the family's solvency -
December 12, 2011
hard to follow sometimes--the writing didnt "flow" easily
sometimes it seemed be an instruction manual for farming and whiskey making
I shouldnt have even bothered finishing it
it didnt really have its own unique story line..contrived from many others and almost identical ..........
sometimes it seemed be an instruction manual for farming and whiskey making
I shouldnt have even bothered finishing it
it didnt really have its own unique story line..contrived from many others and almost identical ..........
June 3, 2011
This book is about black farm workers that knows how to make "Moonshine". and unknown family secrets between Whites & Black Families.
August 28, 2012
Was hard to follow all the different story lines and names at first. Gave a good glimpse into what life would have been like back in that time. Easy weekend read.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews