Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter

Larry Ott has lived his whole life in a small town in Mississippi. Different from other boys, quiet, and a bookworm, he doesn’t make friends easily. So when Silas, a black boy, and his single mother move onto the Ott’s land into a tumble down cabin, Larry cautiously extends a hand in friendship. The two boys connect almost instantly, but hide their friendship from people who might not approve of it – especially Larry’s abusive, alcoholic father. Then the unthinkable happens. Larry takes the beautiful and worldly Cindy Walker on a first date to the drive-in, and the girl is never seen again. Suspicion that Larry is responsible for her disappearance follows him from that day forward, and his only friend moves away leaving Larry show more alone once again.

Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter opens twenty-five years after Cindy’s disappearance. Another local girl has gone missing and once again, the accusatory eyes of the town have fallen onto Larry. Silas has returned, working as a constable, and avoiding Larry while quietly doing his job. Old secrets are surfacing which will bring the two men back together again and may hold the key to the mystery of both missing women.

Tom Franklin’s Edgar Award nominated novel is both literary and mystery – a novel which takes the reader deeply into the South where racism infiltrates everything. Atmospheric and firmly anchored in place, Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter moves back and forth from the mid-70s to the present, gradually revealing the characters and uncovering their secrets.

Larry Ott is a sympathetic character – a man who has been ostracized and rejected his whole life, but who has maintained his gentle nature and humanity through it all. Larry, it seems, symbolizes all those bullied children who only wish for one friend in a world which seems against them.

I sped through this novel which is somewhat predictable, and yet still manages to be wholly satisfying. The relationship between Silas and Larry is complex and takes center stage; the mystery seems almost secondary to the real story about two men, one black and one white, who share secrets and a past which informs their whole lives.

Themes of the book include bullying, racism, and domestic violence. Readers should be warned, some of the language in the book is harsh and Franklin does not spare the reader the ugliness of racism. Despite this, the imagery and language never feel gratuitous because the idea of being different (whether it be due to skin color or something less tangible) is a strong concept in the novel. Larry is viewed as “scary” and strange because he is a bit of a recluse and prefers his books to socializing; Silas’s skin color keeps him in a less than responsible position on the police force.

Tom Franklin’s novel reminds me of another author whose work I have enjoyed: John Hart. Both men set their stories in the South and create damaged characters who are not well-accepted in society. Both authors weave the literary genre tightly together with mystery-suspense.

Readers who love both literary and mystery, will undoubtedly want to pick up a copy of Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter.

Highly recommended. show less

(originally reviewed on 2-2-11)

I love southern fiction, and I was especially interested in reading this book as the setting is in southeastern Mississippi, which is close to where I live now in Mobile, Alabama. I use to read a lot more mysteries than I read now, particularly in the early 1990s, but I’m not a fan of gritty content, so I’ve drifted more into literary fiction over the years. I was pleasantly relieved, when, for the most part, this book turned out to be more character driven and written in a literary style without the typical gory descriptions of many modern novels. It’s a page turner and I read it pretty much straight through.

The two main characters are Larry (white), called ‘Scary Larry’ by the locals, and Silas show more (black), the local policeman. Growing up, the two were friends for a time when they lived in close proximity to each other. Then when Larry was in high school, he was accused by the community of killing a girl after a date, although the body was never found and Larry was never formally charged. Due to all this, Larry lives a lonely life in almost total isolation, with only his books (mostly horror) to keep him company.

Fast forward about 20 years and now another girl is missing. Naturally, the police consider Larry ‘a person of interest’ in the case, and Silas, his old boyhood friend, must get involved in trying to solve the girl’s disappearance.

This book is about a lot more than just the mysteries of the two girls’ disappearances. It’s about race, class, friendship, and family. I enjoyed it and would definitely read another book by this author, especially if Silas were one of the characters. show less

You know, I tend to get nervous when a novel has a lot of hype around it before I read it. I worry it won’t live up to the fuss or I’ll hate it and people will wonder what the heck is wrong with me. So, after reading review after review about what an incredible book Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter was I started it holding my breath. On top of that I was listening to it, audio book being a medium I’m still not 100% comfortable with.

Well, holy cow, from the first sentence I was whisked away. Simply put, this is an incredible book. The writing makes me realize what artists authors are. They paint amazing pictures with words so artfully put together I can see the image they’re describing without even trying.

The characters in this show more novel are so well written there was never a doubt that they were who they were or about how they were reacting to the situations. Silas and Larry were so real to me I found myself disappointed when one didn’t live up to my faith in him and my heart broke for the other when all that actually happened to him was reveled.

One of the surprising things about this mystery, for me, was even though I kind of figured out what happened before the details were laid out, I still wanted to know what happened. I was nervous when each was in danger and relieved when truths came out. I’m sure my neighbors were wondering what I listening to when I went out of my daily walk with this playing in my MP3 player and would practically talk back to the story. I’m sure my expression went for shock, to outrage, to concern all while walking down my street.

Now a few words about the audio version; It was read by Kevin Kenerly and he did a really job. I could instantly tell the difference between each of the characters. He did a nice job on the women’s voices, which I think is always the hardest part of audio books, when the reader has to “act” the opposite sex. It wasn’t a problem here.

I’ve only just started listening to audio books again and I find I still have a hard time following along. This first book I listened to this year was Standing in the Rainbow by Fannie Flagg, which I’ve read before so following along wasn’t really an issue. When my son started having trouble at school and we looking for different ways to help him along we found he followed better and remember more when he heard things as opposed to reading them. He hears something once and it’s in his vault for good. When he reads it’s gone almost as soon as he read it, though this is getting better the more he reads. I’m finding I’m the exact opposite. I read something and I can remember it for what seems like forever but when I listen it just slips away. Like my son is getting better as I use the skill so by the end of this year I should be an audio book pro.

I can’t recommend this book enough, there’s a reason why it tops so many lists. I’ve checked out Tom Franklin’s back catalog and found he has two previous novels-Hell at the Breech and Smonk (great title)-and both sound very interesting to me. He also has a collection of short stories titled Poachers. I look forward to reading more by this author and I have my fingers crossed he might consider bringing back Larry and Silas and the folks of Chabot, Mississippi. show less

When a young girl goes missing, fingers start pointing at "Scary Larry" Ott, who 25 years before was suspected in the disappearance of another girl. Soon, Larry winds up dead, and Silas, once Larry's friend, now the town constable, finds himself investigating: is it murder or suicide? What really happened 25 years ago?

The plot rests on the importance of individual moments in time, distinct choices characters make which have lasting effects. Sometimes these choices are thought-out, a continued affair or persistent neglect; other times these choices are spur-of-the-moment, an immediate and mainly selfish decision to do - or not do - something. These are the moments which lead to the "what-if" scenarios on the small, but noteworthy scale. show more What if I had just given the gun back? What if I had refused to come back? What if I had told the truth? Despite the almost mundane quality of the choices and the small circle which is impacted, these decisions are no less momentous to those involved.

This is definitely a book about the past and its impact on the present. Two stories are being told in alternating chapters: the present where a girl is missing and Larry has been shot, and the past where two boys grow together and then apart before a girl goes missing. I really enjoyed piecing together the events surrounding both times. Some complain that there were no real surprises or twists, but I am very thankful for that. I find the SURPRISE ENDING a wee bit gimmicky and overused. The revelations didn't slap you across the face; they slowly built in such a way that the big reveal was more an acknowledgement of what I already knew rather than a dousing of icy water. Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter is a perfectly atmospheric literary suspense. show less

Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter
This book moves the reader along two time-lines for the two main characters, one black and one white, as teenage boys and as adult men in a small town in Mississippi. In each time-line a teenage girl has disappeared and the white character is suspected of having abducted and killed them. Both timelines move at a pace slow enough to let you absorb the details of the experience of growing up in a small town that thinks it knows what to expect of you.

The charm of the book, apart from its well-crafted prose, is that the reader’s understanding of the connections between past and present shifts constantly as new information emerges. This is more than a plot device, it is an insight into how life works: meaning show more is emergent, not fixed and truth requires more than a knowledge of the factors before it can be understood. Tom Franklin presents a world in which our character and our past choices shape us but do not determine our path.

Although the disappearance of the two girls is central to story and the author honours the implicit promise to the reader by providing a satisfactory denouement, this is not, in my opinion, primarily a crime novel. It is a novel about the impact of secrets on those who hold them and those from whom they are withheld and about the impact of judgements on those who make them and those who are judged. It explores fidelity and honesty and the evil that lurk in shadows that we create when we refuse to speak the truth.

The novel has a strong sense of place and a deep insight into the hearts of damaged people. It avoids cliché and sensationalism. It left me with a renewed sense that the future is ours to make provided we are willing and able to acknowledge our past.

This is the kind of book I would like to have seen on the Booker short –list. show less

Tom Franklin’s Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter, is a story of two childhood friends - one white, one black - now separated by a gulf of tragedy, suspicion, and guilt.

For over twenty years Larry Ott has lived as a pariah in Chabot, Mississippi. As a teenager, he took a girl on a date and she disappeared. She was never found and suspicion of foul play has hounded Larry ever since. Although no proof of guilt was ever discovered, Larry has been shunned by the community and leads a solitary existence. Now another girl has disappeared and folks in town are certain he is the one responsible.

Silas Jones, the son of a poor, single black mother, was once Larry’s good friend. Now, he is the constable in Chabot and asked to investigate.

Franklin show more has created a tale of suspense and anguish that explores the many nooks and crannies of human intercourse. With an admixture of flashbacks, he slowly guides the reader to a surprising, but inevitable, conclusion. There is a Faulknerish quality to Franklin’s writing that enriches the characters far beyond the usual whodunit. This is definitely a good read! show less

Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter is Tom Franklin’s crime mystery that is so much more than that. I view this as much more a story about human nature, human failings, and human relationships than a who-done-it. At the heart of the novel are two boys, Silas (a black boy) and Larry (a white boy), who want to have a friendship despite family and community taboos, and find themselves in an interesting situation as adults, standing on opposite sides of the small town legal system.

Along the way, Franklin makes some astute observations about people and small town sensibilities.

“Sometimes he thought of Alice Jones, of Silas, how Larry’s mother had given them coats but not a ride in her car. How what seemed like kindness could be the show more opposite.”

It made me think about intent vs. action. How sometimes we cloak our worst impulses in fancier clothing and think no one recognizes the truth. Or perhaps we do not care if others see the truth as long as we have credible deniability.

”What’s missing out of you, Silas?” Courage, he thought.

Larry certainly had a kind of courage. He is portrayed as a weaker person, but what kind of courage does it take to stand up to injustice and not let it rot your soul? When is it too late to atone for a lack of courage that affects the life of another to the extent that we see here? And where along the line might one act of kindness or inclusion have changed the outcome completely? I could not help thinking about all the excluded, laughed-at kids who become outcasts and whose lives are ruined in high school because they have their self-confidence eroded and believe they are what others say they are.

The most heroic person in this book is poor Larry Ott, who bears his undeserved fate without hate or recrimination, who continues to want and seek a friend, who bears his lonely life by caring for his chickens as if all living things matter.

Kudos to Franklin. This is my second of his novels, but hopefully not the last. show less