The Hard to Catch Mercy

"A work of art . . . Baldwin's first novel is like a great wheel with fifteen spokes, each spoke an adventure emanating from its hub in the story of the Allson family of Cedar Point in low-country South Carolina. Set in 1916, most of the tale involves the maturation of the 14-year-old narrator, Willie T. Allson, who learns about sex, death, history and the fragile nature of happiness."

— The Raleigh News & Observer



"[A] funny, sad, gentle, violent story . . . The adventures of Willie T. are so exciting a reader can scarcely get from page to page fast enough." — Detroit Free Press



WINNER OF THE LILLIAN SMITH AWARD FOR FICTION