The Last Witness From a Dirt Road [Paperback]

Bill Hunt (Author)

Book Description

A moving coming-of-age story, written, possibly by one of the last of Southerners to grow up on a working sugar plantation in rural Louisiana. Told through the eyes and voice of the son of the white overseer, this is a unique portrait of a time and place on the cusp of dramatic change.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

A moving coming-of-age story, written by one of the last of Southerners to grow up on a working plantation in Louisiana. Told through the eyes of the young son of the white overseer, this is a unique portrait of a time and place on the cusp of dramatic change. It's the 1940s and Billy lives on Shirley Plantation with his family. Effortlessly, he moves back and forth across the lines of segregation, navigating a whites-only life at church and school and returning to the lively black community on the plantation. Life seems ideal, but slowly, his childhood innocence begins to vanish. Mag, who worked in the "Big House" since Billy was born, is forced to give up her house and leave the plantation, when her man marries a younger woman. A rare snowstorm brings out the difference between Billy's family in the "Big House" to the life of the field hands who live in the small houses in the Quarters, along the dirt road. Though Billy tries to bridge the divide, he struggles with the differences between his life and the life of the black workers, and he never forgets the inequities he's witnesed--nor the love and relationships that were formed. A stunning portrait of life in a unique era that will never be again, eloquently told by a man who lived it. (New York Times Review by best-selling author Ellen Tanner Marsh: And where does a writer, find the spirit and heart to relate such a wrenchingly honest and compelling story?...Author Bill Hunt presents a moving account of one boy's young life that unfolds as memorably and graphically as the story's carefully honed narrative itself...this coming-of-age novel.

About the Author

Bill Hunt was born into the family of a sharecropper in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, near the small town named Bunkie. In the mid 1930s his father became the overseer of a large sugarcane plantation and the family moved to the this black community setting where Hunt grew up. Hunt received an Accounting Degree in 1956 from the University of Louisiana Lafayette. A few months later, he entered the military, where he worked in Army Finance in Washington state and Alaska. He retired from his profession in health care administration in 1991, and began to write about a unique childhood lost in history, on a Louisiana sugar plantation. Proceeds will be donated to Bill Hunt's hometown of Bunkie, in Louisiana as seed money to develop a Boys and Girls Club. He lives with his wife Grace in Athens, Alabama with their four children and nine grandchildren nearby.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 264 pages
• Publisher: BookSurge Publishing (December 20, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1419618830
• ISBN-13: 978-1419618833
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,699,568 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I was born the son of a sugar plantation overseer in Bunkie, Louisiana; lived in the Black community setting of the plantation in a time when they were still the established economic institution of the rural Deep South, and I attended all white schools. My childhood was unique, close to people of a different race and culture, but always, I was troubled about segregation and racism. An earlier novel, a fictionalized memoir, "The Last Witness From a Dirt Road," (2005)a narrative, was a vehicle exploring race relations in the 1940s and 50s written through the eyes of a 12-year-old boy, and now, "A Full-Grown Man," (fiction) explores the social mores of the 1960s and 70s. Both novels are set in rural Louisiana. I finished college at University of Louisiana - Lafayette, married Grace and have reared four children. We live in the Tennessee Valley of North Alabama.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You're Right There, December 30, 2005

By 

Carol A. Dumond (prides crossing, MA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Last Witness From a Dirt Road (Paperback)

Through a personal narrative such as this, one is able to truly appreciate the love,the traditions, and the actual workings of a plantation. This is a story of the bonds that were established - and still linger - in a rural Louisiana community during a unique time in American Southern history. Through good humor and lively dialogue, the reader develops an affectionate attachment to the characters and the way their lives were woven together. You'll close the book, wishing for a sequel.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My heart is touched by this dirt road!, December 29, 2005

By 

C. Kayser - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Last Witness From a Dirt Road (Paperback)

This book is an excellent story in American history. It's rich in description and detail and pulls you into the world of this 11-yr.-old boy in central Louisiana during the 40s. The laughs, the sorrow, the warmth and realness of relationships will keep you enthralled throughout the story. Your heart will ache with Billy as he comes to realize that his immediate world around him is changing, and things will forever be different, hopefully, for the better. It shows how love transcends and blurs the lines separating black and white. This a great human interest story that will appeal to anyone. I think it should be in every library in this country and could see it as a strong screenplay. It's a great read for a long aiplane flight or a cozy evening in bed with a book. Loved it!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mirrored Experience, January 12, 2006

By 

John J. Haydel (Conroe Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Last Witness From a Dirt Road (Paperback)

Having grown up myself in a similar time and place, I was mystified by the way Blacks were treated. Neither my parents the schools nor church seemed to notice that something was amiss. The Blacks all lived across the tracks from the whites and lived a shadowed life compared to the whites. Mr. Hunt's slow realization of the silent pain and suffering of this underclass mirrored my own experience.

His own idyllic childhood was immersed in the love of his family and friends and great dog. His story evoked a great sense of loss and nostalgia for those years.