Peter Matthiessen
Hardcover | Pages: 384 pages Rating: 3.83 | 1523 Users | 162 Reviews
Itemize Epithetical Books Killing Mister Watson (Shadow Country Trilogy #1)
| Title | : | Killing Mister Watson (Shadow Country Trilogy #1) |
| Author | : | Peter Matthiessen |
| Book Format | : | Hardcover |
| Book Edition | : | First Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 384 pages |
| Published | : | August 11th 1992 by Vintage (first published 1990) |
| Categories | : | Mystery. Crime. Fiction. Historical. Historical Fiction. Literary Fiction. Novels |
Rendition In Pursuance Of Books Killing Mister Watson (Shadow Country Trilogy #1)
"But the truth don't count for much after all these years, cause folks hang on to what it suits 'em to believe and won't let go of it." Killing Mr. Watson, p. 92Historically, Edgar "Bloody" Watson did exist and he was really killed by a posse in the Islands along the west coast of Florida. Matthiessen provides the full story of the the life and times of Watson based on amazing oral history accounts by the people of the Florida Islands. Having conducted, transcribed and edited a lot of oral histories I was most impressed by the voices of his narrators. He not only tells the story of Watson but also provides a lesson in racism and class distinction. He had me happily fooled into almost believing every word. He also had me wanting to believe Watson over and over again in the face of ridiculous evidence.
This was not an easy book for me to get into, but once hooked it was masterful.
Details Books During Killing Mister Watson (Shadow Country Trilogy #1)
| Original Title: | Killing Mister Watson |
| ISBN: | 0517086719 (ISBN13: 9780517086711) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Series: | Shadow Country Trilogy #1 |
| Setting: | United States of America Florida(United States) |
| Literary Awards: | Ambassador Book Award for Fiction (1991) |
Rating Epithetical Books Killing Mister Watson (Shadow Country Trilogy #1)
Ratings: 3.83 From 1523 Users | 162 ReviewsWrite Up Epithetical Books Killing Mister Watson (Shadow Country Trilogy #1)
I struggled with this one a bit. It's about the rough and ready people making up the southern Florida territories at the turn of the 20th Century, as it was developing. Its main character, Watson a farmer and businessman running from the law, is mostly represented by his associates and relatives. You hear a lot of different voices and perspectives, and the author portrays these various voices well. The novel covers many small anecdotes about the times, but there is very little plot or movement.This is a remarkable account of life in The Thousand Islands(SW Florida) in the early part of the 20th Century. The descriptions made my skin crawl in discomfort. How they coped with the 'skeeters'( mosquitoes) I will never know.So here I am almost 5 years later and this book remains strong in my mind. Proof, if proof is needed , of a great book.
A fine example of Southern literature written by a guy from New York. Matthiessen's historic fiction falls somewhere between James Agee and Harry Crews, a good read. I also noted influences or allusions to Flannery O'Connor, the obligatory nod to Faulkner, and more than a passing similarity to Macbeth. This was my great-grandparent's generation in pioneer southwest Florida in the 1890s, rich and vibrant, the swamps and mud stick to the pages.
Edgar J. Watson is in the pantheon of American bad guys, right up there with Cormac McCarthy's Judge Holden.If your honest, and who among us is not, he is an ambiguous figure, like Holden. Oh, don't get me wrong, I know the jury of readers, feeling compelled to decide one way or the other, would sent Edgar J. and The Judge to the scaffold and then go home to settle down to a nice family dinner on linen table cloth and never have a doubt about the rightness of what they'd done.Don't get me wrong.
The Night Owls Book Club gave Killing Mr. Watson by Peter Matthiessen a 2-star rating. The group did not care for the book; many gave up on it and didnt finish. Those who did finish found it hard to read, and the main character was so despicable they had difficulty with the plot, even though it was based on an actual person and events. Many in the discussion group indicated that they did like the descriptions of rural Florida in the late 19th and 20th century. The Night Owls Book Club would not
Lord I hated this book! It's the story of a community's plot to kill a hated neighbor from multiple perspectives in the Florida Everglades in the 1800s. Even if I could get beyond the liberal use of the "n" word (which I really can't), the whole book just made me want to take lots and lots of showers. Ick!
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