Sweetsmoke
By David Fuller
The Short Take:
This remarkable novel is actually a revealing character study of slavery and one particularly exceptional slave, structured around the murder investigation of a free black woman against the background of the Civil War.
Why?
This book’s dust cover blurb leads one to expect a typical murder mystery with a very atypical cast and setting: a slave detective in the middle of the Civil War. Maybe that will entice more buyers, but it sure sells this excellent novel short.
The murder and its resolution simply form the framework for a much richer and important story – how the institution of slavery damaged both the owners and the owned in the old South.
Don’t expect the usual evil plantation owners and noble yet downtrodden slaves, however. Fuller’s work is much more complex and nuanced. He creates real human beings with all their strengths, flaws, and inconsistencies. The eight years he spent in research shows, as well as his experience as a screenwriter. Even minor characters with cameo appearances show depth and motivation. The book captures the all-pervasive tension and uneasiness running through the plantation, where any small change of mood could turn an ordinary day into tragedy.
Sweetsmoke doesn’t need extremes to make you gasp – daily reality is horrifying enough.
The central protagonist, Cassius, presents a persona as rich as any literary figure. Fuller brings in references to Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar and Homer’s Illiad with no fear of having his own creation pale in comparison. Cassius’ motivation and resourcefulness are exceptional – as is the pain and anger he tries to overcome. I hope Fuller finds yet another story in his classically heroic Cassius.
The part of the book that dealt with the Battle of Antietam was almost a story within a story. With Cassius as your eyes and ears, you gain a new insight into the wasteful death and destruction. Cassius has no preference for who wins as he knows he’ll always be a slave. His dispassionate observations make the war that much more heartbreaking.
I’ve got to say, as much as I loved this book (and I really did love it), I can’t wait to see the movie. Please, someone, make it so! (Weinsteins, have you read it? Ang Lee, are you listening?)
Want Some Plot?
Cassius is only a slave on a Virginia tobacco plantation, but that doesn’t stop him from desperately wanting to find and punish the murderer of a free black woman who once did him an enormous favor.
As Cassius knows, there will be no investigation into her demise – unlike a slave a free black has no value to anyone – so he takes great risks in his investigation. Due to a close yet complicated relationship with is owner, Hoke Howard, and through dangerous devices of his own, Cassius is able to pursue leads all the way to the Civil War battle at Antietam and back.
However, the main thrust of this book concerns Cassius’ growing awareness and resentment of the true meaning of slavery alongside an exceptional and deeply moving portrayal of the relationships, rivalries, and everyday fears of everyone from field hand to masters involved with Sweetsmoke.
To learn more about David Fuller and his first novel, click here.
