Sarah's book
reviews can be heard on alternate Mondays on KMUW 89.1. Read a transcript
below of her most recent review or listen at:
http://www.kmuw.org/index.php/book/black_water_rising_by_attica_locke/
"Black Water Rising" by Attica Locke (HarperCollins, ISBN 9780061735868,
$25.99)
Attica Locke, named for a cause, embarks on the literary scene with "Black
Water Rising," a suspense novel set in Houston during the early 1980s. Jay
Porter, a former civil rights activist imprisoned after a protest became a
riot, is now a struggling attorney and husband. His office is in a fledging
strip mall, he has a baby on the way, and his heart is in conflict with his
need to strike it rich and provide for his growing family.
The past crudely meets the present when Porter finds himself face to face
with Cynthia Maddox, the mayor of Houston. She is white and slick, he is
black and uneasy. While he lobbies for her support of a dockworker strike
she's like oil on water, floating on the surface, unwilling and unable to
secure her position on the labor issues about to smear her city. Years ago,
when Jay was taken away in handcuffs from a riot Cynthia incited, they lost
touch. He went to jail, then to law school. She worked for Lloyd Bentsen in
DC, and then pursued a career in Texas politics. The former lovers and
partners in the movement barely recognize one another so many years later.
The strike begins, and interests collide. Big oil and government corruption,
greed and murder are the muck that Attica Locke dredges up then refines into
an electrifying story, sure to keep your reading fueled deep into the night.
Review by
Sarah Bagby,
June 11, 2009
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