“A Trip of Goats” — A Win.
“A Trip of Goats,†the novel by our fellow blogger and real-life buddy, Kim Crawford (a/k/a “Velocimanâ€), is a trip that should be taken by anyone who enjoys a compelling story, full of local color and very colorful characters.
The journey of twelve-year old Jubal Lee Jackson (“They call me ‘Jule’â€) takes us through rural Georgia in the sixties and includes places that I doubt are pitched by the state travel bureau. While the geography and raw culture of those places and of that time may be unfamiliar to many, the questions for which young Jule sought answers are not.
I was most taken with the cast of memorable characters that, in most cases, defy a good-guy, bad-guy dichotomy. They range from Jule’s father, the “Senator,†who is a perfect mixture of Darth Vader, W.C. Fields and a pinch of Algonquin J. Calhoun (in whiteface) to the Futch Brothers, who are at once hilarious, profoundly stupid and rotten to the core.
I eagerly turned the pages to see what calamities would next befall young Jule and those who are hot on his trail.
Thank you, Mr. Crawford, for a great read.
I couldn’t put it down once I started it…both hilarious and sad and does portray the Georgia that I used to know and love…all of the good as well as the bad.
My wife decided to read it…and giggled all the way through it…and now we are waiting for the next one from the greatest of the news wordsmiths
Comment by GUYK — September 1, 2009 @ 10:21 am
I liked it very much and also giggled my way through, much like Guyk’s wife. 😉
And… though I finished it last week, I’m still thinking about it. The Senator in particular, wondering why, out of all the characters, I found him the least sympathetic! I have to read it again, obviously.
I bought AToG instead of the new Pat Conroy and I’m glad I did. 😉
Comment by pam — September 1, 2009 @ 11:14 am
And to think…he can wear a dress tricked out with a bull whip and get away with it.
Comment by Sam — September 1, 2009 @ 4:26 pm
It’s an Instant Classic… and would make a fine screenplay. I am, I’ll confess, a bit envious of Mr. Crawford’s talent.
He also is more attractive to Fuck-Monkeys than I will ever be.
Comment by Elisson — September 1, 2009 @ 4:49 pm
I just got mine a week or so ago. It’s up next on my TBR list. Can’t wait.
Comment by Teresa — September 1, 2009 @ 10:10 pm