What do You think about The Chaneysville Incident (1990)?
John Washington, African-American scholar and son of a Baptist minister, comes home to his small, southern Pennsylvania town--Chaneysville--to bury his father and say goodbye to the old man who taught him about the hills and history of the area, the man he felt more sympathy with and for than his upright, moralistic father. His academic career is stalled at this time, but he feels it get a boost when he recalls his friend's tales about a group of runaway slave who reached the town, only to be buried there. Despite resistance from the town, Washington digs for the whole story and the academic resources that will give him the work he needs. His search brings him many things, including love, a better understanding of his mentor and his father, and the history of runaway slaves and his town.Based on real events, this nearly-forgotten book won the PEN-Faulkner Award when it was published. It's a fascinating read about historians, small-town Pennsylvania, and the things that people would prefer to have forgotten, almost a horror novel in some ways. I have loved it since it came out, and had my first copy of it stolen from someone who borrowed it and obviously esteemed it as much as I did.
—Tamora Pierce
Nothing wrong with this book that a good editor could not have fixed.The first quarter of this book knocked my socks off! Later the thing just got tedious. I didn't want to hear what year this church was built; I was sick of his annoying girlfriend; I was tired of his index cards; and most especially I was fed up with his damned toddies. What a shame. It could have been one of this country's classics!...Ok, I am upgrading to 4 stars just for the excellent writing. It was the meandering storyline and distracting amount of irrelevant historical detail that did it under. I think this author is still alive; I want to ask him to take it back and fix it.
—Theresa
I actually read this book twice. When I first read it, I was taken with the location--much of the work is set around Bedford County, Pennsylvania, which is where my mother's family came from. So many of the place names were somewhat familiar.I was thunder-struck as the topic--former black slaves who lived in this area, and a lively escape route for slaves. The book is intricate, involving a professor in Philadelphia whose surrogate father is dying. Because of that, John Washington travels to his home in Everett, PA. There he begins to unravel a mystery of his youth--who and what was his father. He knows who he was...but on a surface level only. He sets about to unravel the mystery, which is the main engine of the plot.Frankly, John is not a likeable character. On my second read, I cringed at some of the things he did.But the power of the book is derived from its climax, which is based on an historical event where a group of slaves on the underground railroad choose death rather than recapture.
—Donna
