“Shoot the Devil!” Take arms agin a see-ya trubbles n by opposin end em! (as Buddy Don might put it). This first novel - but not first literary effort by any means - is a welcome event, and I am fortunate to be at ground zero to sound my trumpet and join the parade. This is an honest effort to chronicle a young man’s search for relevance. Not a new topic, but one with a novel approach. Buddy Don apparently has based his narrative on a diary faithfully kept over the years. Recognizing the power of spoken expression in addressing the wonder of life experience, he presents his take on the cultural upheaval of the 1960’s through a written interpretation of the dialect of his peers in rural Tennessee. This provides a dimension absent from other books I am aware of in this genre. In style, there is precedent in the language of poets like Bobby Burns, Kipling, or our own Paul Lawrence Dunbar. In substance, a kinship with Steppenwolf? Well, kind of. You Can’t Go Home Again? Getting warmer. In Tragic Life (Vardis Fisher)? This is pretty close, but without the vernacular. Prose written in dialect is usually shorter and often one funny gag (You Know Me, Al). In Shoot the Devil there are plenty of funny moments, but it is not a ha ha book. It chronicles his odyssey from puberty to manhood, his mind distracted but never governed by the juices coursing through his veins. He remains an honest reporter and seasoned storyteller, with appropriate tricks of the trade. Buddy Don narrates for us a geographical journey as well, as he migrates from Tennessee to California and back to his Tennessee roots, now more in tune with the mores and social experiments of the era. He perhaps inadvertently personifies an argument for the legalization of “theevil weed” due to his prowess as demonstrated in his ability to hold down a full time job as computer programmer, complete an academic program with honors, and at the same time party and entertain the ladies. Although I suspect genes were the prime enabler for this feat, the MaryJane experience obviously didn’t hinder his spectacular efforts. I do not doubt the veracity of his story for a single moment. The quality of his narrative allows for no cynicism. Many characters (strictly fictional, of course) appear, some only briefly, and references to folks previously introduced could tax the memory, but Buddy Don has anticipated this by including a helpful 14 page alphabetical glossary of names. The rhythm and poetry of Buddy Don's conversation with us illuminate the images he projects into our perception, and we eagerly follow his adventures into life and reflection on life. This is a uniquely entertaining achievement. ( )