Quakertown

by Lee Martin

In Quakertown, award-winning author Lee Martin travels back to 1920s Texas to tell the story of a flourishing black community that was segregated from its white neighbors -- and of the remarkable gardener, Little Washington Jones, who was asked to make a heartbreaking choice. Based on a true story, Quakertown draws on the rich texture of the South -- of the Pecan Creek running along the edges of the town, the spectacular and rare white lilac, and the rising racial tensions that bubble under the surface and threaten to tear neighbors apart. With rare skill and compassion, Lee Martin carves out the delicate story of two families -- one white and one black -- and the child whose birth brings a gift of forgiveness.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, African American

304 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Lee Martin is the author of the novels, The Bright Forever, a finalist for the 2006 Pulitzer Prize in Fiction; River of Heaven; Quakertown; Break the Skin; Yours, Jean; The Glassmaker's Wife; and the soon-to-be-released, The Evening Shades. He has also published four memoirs, From Our House, Turning Bones, Such a Life, and Gone the Hard Road. His first book was the short story collection, The Least You Need To Know, and he recently published another, The Mutual UFO Netwlrk. He is the co-editor of Passing the Word: Writers on Their Mentors. His fiction and nonfiction have appeared in such places as Harper's, Ms., Creative Nonfiction, The Georgia Review, The Kenyon Review, Fourth Genre, River Teeth, The Southern Review, Prairie Schooner, and Glimmer Train. He is the winner of the Mary McCarthy Prize in Short Fiction and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Ohio Arts Council. He teaches in the MFA Program at The Ohio State University, where he was the winner of the 2006 Alumni Award for Distinguished Teaching.

Reviews

[Tammy Parks · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fictionalized account of Quakertown, a thriving and independent African America community in 1920s Texas. As racial tensions escalate, tragedy befalls the community.
An interesting book about the choices we make, and how those decisions ripple and affect others. Full of complicated, complex characters, and written with an interesting narrative structure (each chapter is told from a different point of view).
"We do this and we do that, and pretty soon we've made a life. Maybe not the one we thought we'd make, but, still, there it is, the only one we've got. It's up to us to find a way to love it."
"We're all ruined, all of us in one way or another. There's no shame in that."

[Kari · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of my favorite books! Historical fiction that keeps you reading.

[Brittany · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this book was written well, it was such a sad sad tale. Our history in America isn't the best. I never knew about this event in Texas.

The characters were good though. You loved some, and loathed others. I was really hoping Kizer would come back into the mix at the end.

[Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is probably more of a 3 1/2 star book, in my opinion. The strength for me is that it is based very much on the true story about displacement of an African American community during the early 20th century. I'm grateful to have found the book and to have learned about this piece of the shameful treatment of Black Americans. From an historic perspective, Martin does a good job of bringing in many of the issues that arose at that time, including Garvey's return to Africa movement, Jim Crow laws, the interdependence of the Black and White communities, and treatment of women.

The book is well-written in that it maintained tension and interest. What I found less effective was the character development. The characters are broad enough so as to not be stereotypes, but in some cases just barely. There just seemed to be a lack of depth in most of them.

I also found some of the white characters to be just a bit too good-- the amount of interracial love seemed disproportionate, and a couple characters, such as Gleason, just seemed unrealistically dedicated to helping the Black community. The Bells- Andrew and Kizer-- also seemed at points to be just too good to be believed; however, Andrew proves to be a coward and Kizer at one point implores his father to use the 'influence' of the KKK, so that made them a bit more multi-dimensional and realistic for the times.
I was glad that the 'happily ever after' romance I was anticipating did not happen.

The story does a nice job of presenting and explaining the Catch-22 in which Little Jones finds himself, which I imagine was a very real situation for many Black people. All in all, I'm glad to have read the book and to know more about the history of Quakertown and Denton.

[Coleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love this book. Alas.....

Based upon the true story of Quakertown, a thriving black community that was uprooted by the whites of Denton, Texas who wanted to used the land of Quakertown for a city park. A shameful episode that would have made for an excellent exploration of racial injustice in the 1920s South.

But instead of fully exploring the demise of Quakertown, the author inserts drama by focusing on Camellia, a young Black woman, and her relationships with two men, one White, one Black. While Quakertown is dismantled and re-established over the course of this novel, that move seems secondary to the arcs of Camellia and her family, and the arcs of Kizer (one of the men she loves) and his family.

The book concludes with an epilogue, set in 1943, that is too pat and seems to ignore the ongoing racial tensions of that time.

Lee Martin's prose is lovely, but I wanted to gain a deeper understanding of the history of Quakertown, and know the people who lived thru this history. This book left me wanting.

[Gloria · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book that took us back to times that are shameful in what people did and were allowed to do! A Quakertown had been established near Denton, Tx and through this book you get to know many of the people who lived there and had to go through the racial injustices. There were those who were sympathetic (as they dared to be) with the "colored race" of those days and tried to do what they could to decrease the violence surrounding the times. In this book, it shows all the injustices that were done to people and how a few people got the courage to stand out and help and not be quiet anymore. It is a sad story how violence tore apart the town, and families and how they lost family members, property and homes...all because a bunch of white folks got together and decided the others lived too close to their nice little town. Not a nice history or time, but good to get stories like this out there to people as part of the history that no one wanted you to know!

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

I heard that there was a book out about Quakertown, a place I've been fascinated by since I read White Lilacs and seen the historical marker in Denton, Texas.

If I had to choose one word to describe this book, I would say haunting. So much goes wrong in this book! I have to admit, though, that I want to go explore behind Denton's library. Is there still a white lilac tree? It figures so prominently in the books.

I loved/hated the characters. In any case, I felt passionately about them. So much so that I ended up losing way too much sleep to finish the book.

[Charlotte Tressler · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel tells of a shameful period in the history of my hometown, Denton, TX, when the thriving black section, called Quakertown, was forcibly relocated in order to make way for a park.
The stories of two families, one black and one white, are woven into the narrative with skill and empathy.
And, oh, that poor elephant.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and stayed up way too late every night while I was reading it. I visited Lee Martin's website and am very glad to see he's written several more books since this one was published.

[Lynette Fullerton · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good, but didn't feel quite right. The ending seemed a little too tidy, too nice. I know, I've always been a sucker for happy endings. But from the first chapter I had a feeling in my gut, like this book was going to break my heart, and it could have done so many times...but I finished the book with dry eyes and a bit of a shrug. Odd.

[Kathleen McRae · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is set in Texas but could be anywhere in the south of America where the ideals of the south in the civil war never went away even though the war ended with abolition of slavery. This is about Jim Crow and whether a black person lowered their eyes and were humble enough when in the presence of their former masters.

[Patrick Barry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in the 1920s, each chapter is told from a different point of view. It is a fictionalized account of Quakertown, a thriving African America community in 1920s Texas. It focuses on a talented gardener who was asked to make a very hard choice. A fine story.

[Nancy Kennedy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting to read about Denton in the 1920’s. Race relations certainly weren’t the best; a lot of houses got burned down!

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another historical novel. this one set in north Texas during Jim Crow era.

[Sandra Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another tragic story, beautifully told. We did this for bookclub. The story is very well developed with in-depth characters. Even as I read it, I saw how delicately the author exposed the gifts and flaws of each individual ... and how he so realistically set these people, brought to life through imagination, into an actual historical event. The beloved characters in this novel exposed the pain and small joys of life in old Quakertown, the injustices of the time, choices made unbearable by judgement and inequity. I thank the author, Lee Martin, as he made Eugie and Bert and Little and Tibby and Ike, and even Mr. Smoke, into real people that I believed I could see and touch. I liked how he went to first person (Eugenia Mattoon) in the epilogue. I loved the sweet connection (never really mentioned aloud) of Eugenia and her grandmother Tibby through their songs, the thread throughout the story of blurred lines between the whites and the "coloreds." Quakertown ... such a poignant portrayal of life in a time that exposed character and perseverance.

[Superstition Review · Rating 5 out of 5]

The unfortunately true story of an African American community's upheaval in 1920s Texas focuses on the reactions of two quasi-fictional families, one white and one black, who are integral in the town's shift toward further segregation and its fiery aftermath. Little Washington Jones, a talented gardener, has to adapt to changing attitudes towards people of color, making a life for himself in a white man's world while trying to protect his daughter Camellia. Andrew Bell, a banker, tries to make life in nearby Denton more palatable for his fellow townspeople while taking care of his alcoholic wife Tibby and crippled son Kizer. When the demands become too great after a public shooting, both men have to choose between their families and the town they hold so dear. Their children must also live with the often-heartbreaking consequences of their own actions as well as those of their parents.

Though it may be billed as nonfiction, Lee Martin's Quakertown reads as what it is--an engaging novel from a talented translator of the past.

By Julie Matsen

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was not a book about the flapper/jazz age 1920's, although it did have some references to them, but was a fascinating look at Denton, TX, in the 1920's. This was a racially turbulent time, in the post Civil War south, after WWI, and before the civil rights movement. I would love to know how much of the fictional history regarding Denton and some of it's citizens and neighborhoods is based on reality or true to fact, something I intend to look up in my free time. A good read for anyone familiar with Denton, TX, or from Texas, I thought.

[Tami · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book based on actual events that happened near the area where I live. So much has changed since the 1920's, it's hard to imagine that the community was actually like what is described in the book. I thought Lee Martin did a great job of weaving actual facts and events into his story. I also liked how he presented the characters, showing their flaws along with their good qualities.

[Erika · Rating 2 out of 5]

I judged a book by its cover and it let me down.

This story was draaaaaamaaaaaa. Too much happened and it happened so fast there wasn't time to process much or feel for the characters which weren't really developed well. I finished it, so I guess that says something. Possibly that I was too lazy to get up and get another book.

[Argnese Julmist · Rating 5 out of 5]

The way the author dips into the African American community to express their feelings and lifestyle then flips into the White American community is truly fascinating. He defines love as being colorblind and that color is the only thing that keeps people from understanding one another.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am reall enjoying this story, set in the South in the early 1920's. It is a romance, but ultimately a another poignant look into the lives of blacks and whites and the choices made by both. I really like the way he writes!

[Denise Clyne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not The kind of book I usually read. Mostly interested me because I live in Denton, Tx. the town in which the story is placed. Interested in finding out what in the book is factual and what is fiction.

[Bethany Daluz · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a story about Little Washington Jones and his family and how a flourishing black community went through racial tensions back in the 1920s. Very heart-warming and the storyline was very emotion-driven.

[Sherry · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fast read. I fell in love with characters. They were all woven together so neatly and the story took unexpected turns.

[Denise Ballentine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good story, but a bit over the top with melodrama.

[Kathleen Resendes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Insight into Texas town of Denton in the 20's. Characters were believable and
unique. We were placed in the middle of a small town during

[Glmomich · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hard to read and follow. Took a lot to finish the book.

[Jonna · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book with a perspective not often given in novels - it deals with a black community in the 20's and the intricacies that occur therein. A very good and worthwhile read.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

drama!

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

such a touching book. so glad I read it.