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"Hick" by Andrea Portes (Unbridled Books, ISBN 9781932961324, $14.95)
 
When I first started reading Andrea Portes's "Hick," I almost couldn't stand the
language. Even though the title was a dead giveaway of the backward drawl I
should expect: the degree of "hickishness" with which the protagonist spoke (I'm
reluctant to classify it as "English") was not beyond comprehension, but it was
almost beyond compassion.
 
Luli McMullen is 13-years-old, growing up in rural Nebraska. Every evening she
has to witness, from a corner in the local bar, her mother flirting with and
eventually leaving with some new guy. This always occurs under the watchful eye
of her father, whose mood Luli gauges by the number of drinks he consumes. She
judges him each morning with similar markers--the number of cigarette butts in
the ashtray, or the amount of Jack Daniels left in the bottle. Every time her
father drinks too much to drive, the local bartender drives Luli home. The last
time he drops her off, though, he kisses her, and she realizes that, even at age
13, she has the same sexual power as her mother.
 
One morning a stranger comes calling for Luli's mother and they leave together
on "business." When Luli's father awakens to the news, he too leaves to work on
"paperwork." Luli realizes her father isn't coming back, so she decides to leave
as well and heads for Las Vegas.
 
Now, as I was reading the book, this was the part where I thought I could
predict what would happen next. When a man named Eddie picks up Luli, I think,
"Okay. Eddie will drive Luli to Las Vegas and they'll take the town by storm."
But no. Luli insults Eddie and he kicks her out of his truck in the middle of
nowhere. Luli is then picked up by Glenda, who I think is just another stranger,
but no, she knows Eddie and warns Luli to stay away from him. But even after
this warning, Glenda drives Luli straight to Eddie, who promptly takes Luli with
him. When things go wrong I think, "This is fiction. Portes won't let anything
bad happen to this 13-year-old." But after Luli is raped and tied to a bed for
three days, I begin to wonder if I've misjudged Andrea Portes.
 
Although "Hick" was a slow start for me, it has a strong finish. Even the
language that I couldn't initially stomach evolves--sadly, because just as Luli
is robbed of her innocence, so is her voice. "Hick" is brave first novel for
Andrea Portes. She's definitely one to keep an eye out for.
 
Review by Beth Golay, May 18, 2007
 


 

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