Cadillac Orpheus
A Novel
Solon Timothy Woodward
- Inspired
- by
- Carl
- Hiaasen
- and
- Victor
- D.
- LaValle
- in
- equal
- measure,
- Solon
- Timothy
- Woodward
- mines
- the
- nether
- regions
- of
- Florida
- in
- search
- of
- high
- drama
- and
- raucous
- comedy.
- Full
- of
- sex,
- death,
- and
- humor,
- this
- bawdy,
- brilliant
- debut
- introduces
- us
- to
- three
- generations
- of
- a
- family
- in
- the
- boisterous,
- unholy,
- uncompromising
- landscape
- that
- is
- the
- South
- of
- today.Nowhere
- are
- the
- careless
- vagaries
- of
- fate
- more
- evident
- than
- in
- a
- town
- called
- Johnsonville
- on
- the
- northern
- Florida
- coast,
- where
- a
- family
- called
- the
- Toaks
- have
- pushed
- every
- possible
- social
- boundary
- to
- its
- logical
- extreme
- for
- three
- generations.
- Feddy
- Toak,
- in
- his
- forties,
- is
- a
- medical
- school
- dropout,
- recovering
- alcohol
- and
- cocaine
- addict,
- and
- former
- handyman.
- He
- lives
- marginally
- in
- cheap
- rental
- properties
- owned
- by
- his
- father,
- Teo,
- one
- of
- Johnsonville's
- most
- prosperous
- bail
- bondsmen,
- slumlord,
- and
- idol
- to
- a
- diminishing
- old
- guard
- of
- hustlers
- and
- con
- men
- who
- frequent
- such
- dives
- as
- the
- He
- Ain't
- Here
- Lounge.
- Jesmond
- Toak,
- Feddy's
- son,
- haunted
- by
- his
- father's
- violent
- past
- and
- current
- failures,
- is
- turning
- toward
- the
- low
- road.The
- entire
- city
- seethes
- with
- schemes
- and
- intrigue
- and
- the
- plot
- builds
- as
- monies
- are
- reaped
- from
- a
- black
- youth
- falsely
- arrested
- for
- the
- murder
- of
- a
- white
- cop,
- insurance
- scams
- involving
- poor
- residents
- stricken
- with
- cancer
- and
- AIDS,
- and
- nefarious
- land
- deals
- involving
- cemeteries
- and
- real-estate
- scam
- artists.
- Suicides
- and
- murders,
- infidelities
- and
- violence
- mount
- and
- converge
- with
- shattering
- precision
- on
- the
- eve
- of
- a
- hurricane,
- forcing
- the
- entire
- community
- to
- struggle
- with
- its
- demons
- --
- and
- search
- for
- some
- chance
- at
- redemption.Chronicling
- a
- slice
- of
- American
- landscape
- and
- culture
- with
- rare
- levels
- of
- depth
- and
- originality,
- Cadillac
- Orpheus
- defies
- categorization:
- it
- is
- by
- turns
- exuberant,
- terrifying,
- hilarious,
- brave,
- brazen,
- and,
- above
- all, wondrous.
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