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The Front Porch Prophet
What do a trigger-happy bootlegger with pancreatic cancer, an alcoholic helicopter pilot who is afraid to fly, and a dead guy with his feet in a camp stove have in common? What are the similarities between a fire department that cannot put out fires, a policeman who has a historic cabin fall on him from out of the sky, and an entire family dedicated to a variety of decease...more
Hardcover, 400 pages
Published
July 1st 2008
by Medallion Press
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A book to be read and absorbed. Mr. Atkins is definitely a "word craftsman." The characters were indeed, characters. Lots of back stories, very excellent character development. I especially loved the ever-changing names of the local diner.
I think the overriding theme of the book was loyalty to friends, and promises made, and how to fulfill them.
My very favorite character in the book was Rufus. Somehow I thought in the end he would end up not so much among the living, but Mr. Atkins surprised m...more
I think the overriding theme of the book was loyalty to friends, and promises made, and how to fulfill them.
My very favorite character in the book was Rufus. Somehow I thought in the end he would end up not so much among the living, but Mr. Atkins surprised m...more
While The Front Porch Prophet is described as a humorous work of Southern fiction about two young men who come of age in North Georgia, it is at times as serious as a rattlesnake. In those moments, the author does not hold back when it comes to the tough issues of broken relationships, death and dying, divorce and a myriad of other not so pleasant moments along life’s journey.
A.J. Longstreet and his friend Eugene Purdue have been through a lot since their carefree childhood days spent playing fo...more
A.J. Longstreet and his friend Eugene Purdue have been through a lot since their carefree childhood days spent playing fo...more
If you’re looking for a wonderful Southern yarn, look no further than The Front Porch Prophet. Atkins has carefully crafted a southern town full of richly drawn characters amidst very real conflicts. Front and center, you’ll find A.J. Longstreet who must not only face the impending death of his best friend but also that same friend’s desire that A.J. dole out a swift mercy killing.
The Front Porch Prophet traces A.J.’s story, a meandering, thoroughly southern tale that understands that the past i...more
The Front Porch Prophet traces A.J.’s story, a meandering, thoroughly southern tale that understands that the past i...more
Generally, I dislike novels that try to catch the "voice of Georgia." As a Georgian native, I know that the accents and backgrounds of people change drastically as you travel through the state.
However, Mr. Atkins has a very special ear, I think, at least for those who live in North Georgia.
This novel was both funny and poignant. On the one hand, you have this very vibrant man dying from pancreatic cancer, but on the other hand, life is going on for the point of view character, and his life is p...more
However, Mr. Atkins has a very special ear, I think, at least for those who live in North Georgia.
This novel was both funny and poignant. On the one hand, you have this very vibrant man dying from pancreatic cancer, but on the other hand, life is going on for the point of view character, and his life is p...more
This book would have so much more enjoyable if some of the language had been cleaned up. The writing style is excellent, I just don't enjoy the 'F' word, I think it's crude and unneccessary. The story is about A.J. and his best friend Eugene and various family members and others in a small GA town. Mostly the wild escapades of the two. Eugene lives up on a mountain in a cabin, A..J. is married and lives in town. Some rather wild things happen such as a house being moved by helicopter and the por...more
1 like · like · see review
I'm from North Georgia where this book is set and The Front Porch Prophet is the unicorn (Bigfoot?) of a novel that I look for - one that evokes the region without, as a professor of mine once called it, "too much country store." The characters are colorful but realistic, nobody kicks a good dog, and the main character, A. J. Longstreet could just as well be my dad. Heck, the town, known if it's cotton mill "famous for its denim products and its abuse of the hired help" could be my town!
Atkins i...more
Atkins i...more
Quite possibly the funniest, most poignant book I've ever read. Atkins does a good job of capturing the flavor of his Southern-style protagonists while adding in enough silliness to make this an amusing, easy read. He couches what on the surface is a tragic story with vignettes, flashbacks, and outrageous circumstances, that are funny, touching, and ridiculous. Most importantly, he does a good job of keeping it pretty real. Very little suspension of disbelief is required to accept any of the cha...more
This was a free download for the Nook a while back and it sat there on my Nook kind of rotting. I finally got around to reading it this week, and I was pleasantly surprised. The reason why I was putting off reading it was because I wasn't entirely convinced I was going to like it, but the more I read, the more I realized it was right up my alley. A book about a terminal cancer patient and his (and everyone elses') coming to grips with the finality of his condition? What more could an aspiring nu...more
I can hardly do this book justice, but I will try. If you are curious about this book, you truly need to sit down and absorb it. I can assure you that it will not be what you are expecting.
Atkins is a genius with words. His writing is Mark Twain, William Faulkner and Stephen King rolled into one.
Yes, I said Stephen King. I do not care for King's subjects and foulness, but I can't help but admire his way with words and describing scenes. Atkins has that same aptness, without the foulness.
Upon fi...more
Atkins is a genius with words. His writing is Mark Twain, William Faulkner and Stephen King rolled into one.
Yes, I said Stephen King. I do not care for King's subjects and foulness, but I can't help but admire his way with words and describing scenes. Atkins has that same aptness, without the foulness.
Upon fi...more
A VERY ENTERTAINING READ.
“The Battey clan esteemed only unemployment and alcohol above ignorance, and Hollis was in school solely because the county sheriff had insisted.”—page 13
In hues reminiscent of Fannie Flagg and Rick Bragg, Raymond L. Atkins’ novel ‘The Front Porch Prophet’ paints a warm, humorous and melancholy portrait of small-town, southern Appalachia, with an engaging cast of quirky characters.
I agree with goodreader, June, who wrote in her review: “A book to be read and absorbed. M...more
“The Battey clan esteemed only unemployment and alcohol above ignorance, and Hollis was in school solely because the county sheriff had insisted.”—page 13
In hues reminiscent of Fannie Flagg and Rick Bragg, Raymond L. Atkins’ novel ‘The Front Porch Prophet’ paints a warm, humorous and melancholy portrait of small-town, southern Appalachia, with an engaging cast of quirky characters.
I agree with goodreader, June, who wrote in her review: “A book to be read and absorbed. M...more
Nov 30, 2008
Ken Medernach
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
anyone with a thirst for a great read I own a copy that I want to keep and re-read
'Front Porch Prophet' kept me between tears, that is tears of human emotion and tears of laughter.
Up in the Northwestern corner of Georgia, live a folk like everywhere in Appalachia, torn between the old ways and the new, life in the country and "just makin' do" and the life in the 'mill town', these are the folks that Ray captures and inserts in the lines of "The Front Porch Propet", I say that Ramond captures these characters because no one could "make them up" , he hsd to have been there.
Ray...more
Up in the Northwestern corner of Georgia, live a folk like everywhere in Appalachia, torn between the old ways and the new, life in the country and "just makin' do" and the life in the 'mill town', these are the folks that Ray captures and inserts in the lines of "The Front Porch Propet", I say that Ramond captures these characters because no one could "make them up" , he hsd to have been there.
Ray...more
This was a Free Friday book on my Nook so I did not have high expectations. So what a wonderful surprise when I met A.J. Longstreet, the narrator of the book: a simple man with integrity who finds humor in the everyday events of his Southern town. He works hard, loves his wife, and is a good friend to Eugene Purdue who is dying of cancer. Eugene is a hard drinking sort who I feel perhaps had a lot to do with his current situation, yet I loved him and was sorry for him nonetheless.
This book is ch...more
This book is ch...more
I never usually give up on books, but this one I had to. I actually found myself skipping whole pages at a time. At first the book was awesome but then the author kept delineating from the main plot with all this nonsense stuff from the character past.
I'm all for using the past to tell a story but (an actually example from the book) I don't want to hear about the main characters Co-workers life from when he was born, then continue on to the girl the co-worker liked and he whole life story, which...more
I'm all for using the past to tell a story but (an actually example from the book) I don't want to hear about the main characters Co-workers life from when he was born, then continue on to the girl the co-worker liked and he whole life story, which...more
1 like · like · see review
I truly enjoyed this wonderful little book. I received it free from Barnes & Noble to my Nook. It has a Cathie Pelletier or Richard Russco flair. Human suffering, families with tremendous dysfunctions and real small town characters are portrayed in their everyday lives with wonderful humor and compassion. The one liners and sarcastic humor will keep you turning the pages with laughter. Receiving free books from Barnes & Noble is similar to being in a book club. The opportunity is easily...more
I just finished reading this book last night. I loved this book; I usually reserve my 5 star rating for my beloved books by Steinbeck. But this book was great! I found it to be engaging and hard to put down. The title had me concerned that this book was going to be about religion, but it didn't. I am not sure the title really fits, but it doesn't matter. The book was very well written, descriptive and full of emotion. I was pulling for the characters and felt their pain and joy. On a side note,...more
I wasn't expecting much, since I got this ebook for free. I was delightfully surprised to be completely enthralled by this book. The characters are interesting and funny and tragic all at once. The story is interwoven with the history of the people who populate a small Southern mountain town. It's as much about the people as it is about the story. I realize that doesn't say much about the book itself but this was a story that was hard to put down, impossible to ignore, and made me want more so i...more
Surprise, surprise, surprise. I acquired this book on one of Barnes & Noble's Free Fridays (Nook)(perhaps months ago) and was saving it until a day I had nothing better to do, not expecting to enjoy it much. Was I surprised.
It probably took me a month to read it, not that it was overly long, but it was a like a nice piece of chocolate ... letting it melt in my mouth was a nice thing to do.
Anyone interested in the plot can surely find that on Goodreads or Amazon or somewhere else, so that's n...more
It probably took me a month to read it, not that it was overly long, but it was a like a nice piece of chocolate ... letting it melt in my mouth was a nice thing to do.
Anyone interested in the plot can surely find that on Goodreads or Amazon or somewhere else, so that's n...more
This book surprised me. When my Nook was new and short of titles, I worked to fill it up. Since this was a Nook Free Friday selection, I figured why not. So a quick down load, the passage of a year and suddenly I’m reading an amazing story. The first thing that appealed to me was the fact that the story is set in the Northwest Georgia Mountains and has a wonderfully slow country feel. The characters are full and complete and even the minor characters have depth. The two main characters remind me...more
The Front Porch Prophet is a debut novel by Raymond L. Atkins about a fictional small town in Georgia. The story is told through its main character, A.J. Longstreet, and opens with the tale of how he came to know Eugene Purdue, his childhood best friend who is now dying of cancer. Eugene and A.J. had a tumultuous relationship in recent years, nearly ending their friendship after a drunken argument three years ago. But A.J. runs into Eugene's ex-wife and is told Eugene wants to see him up at the...more
A surprising gem. Beautifully constructed, very moving, and very enjoyable to read.
Atkins gives us deeply felt portraits of life in rural Georgia, alternately laugh-out-loud funny, deadly serious, and poignantly personal -- sometimes all three at once. Don't be put off by the setting if you think you don't like "southern novels." The message and the characters are universal.
Some of the set pieces are a little too pat. Otherwise I'd give it 5 stars. Highly recommended.
Atkins gives us deeply felt portraits of life in rural Georgia, alternately laugh-out-loud funny, deadly serious, and poignantly personal -- sometimes all three at once. Don't be put off by the setting if you think you don't like "southern novels." The message and the characters are universal.
Some of the set pieces are a little too pat. Otherwise I'd give it 5 stars. Highly recommended.
Witty, self effacing and funny. A bit like Dukes of Hazard meets Tuesday's with Morrie.
Honestly, reading the jacket writeup I was not enthused. I didn't expect much when I downloaded it to my Nook on Free Fridays, but it is well worth the read. The story covers a small Northern Georgia town, particularly two residents and their lifelong friendships and dysfunctions. But it goes much deeper than that, and manages to be meaningful and poignant despite the humorous overtones.
Honestly, reading the jacket writeup I was not enthused. I didn't expect much when I downloaded it to my Nook on Free Fridays, but it is well worth the read. The story covers a small Northern Georgia town, particularly two residents and their lifelong friendships and dysfunctions. But it goes much deeper than that, and manages to be meaningful and poignant despite the humorous overtones.
This book is one of the most entertaining books I have read in a long time. The author's style is fast paced and witty. In a book with a subject about which I figured I would be crying a lot, I found myself laughing. I laughed so much at one part wither helicopter (not to give anything away) that I had tears rolling from my eyes. The author brings a small town and it's people to life where you feel like you know them. I would recommend this book to everyone.
I truely Loved this little book. The story takes place in a very small town in the south, where "1000 souls reside" The quirky characters is what kept me engaged in this book. The storyline does have its share of tragedy, yet is very humerous in parts as well.
Only in a very small town would you find a funeral home abbreviated FUN. HOME because the owner was too cheap to pay for the rest of the lettering. The restaraunt attached to the FUN. HOME is called HEAVENLY RIBS and doesn't draw much busi...more
Only in a very small town would you find a funeral home abbreviated FUN. HOME because the owner was too cheap to pay for the rest of the lettering. The restaraunt attached to the FUN. HOME is called HEAVENLY RIBS and doesn't draw much busi...more
Fun, funny, light read. It was free (my favorite price) on my ereader, so it was easy to try something different than what I would normally read. Story about two lifelong friends reminiscing about situations that shaped them through life. Quirky personalities and situations in a rural southern town. Hilarious at times, insightful and poignant at others. Will have to get the hubs to read this--a lot of his kind of humor here. :-P Recommend!
This is the story of 2 lifelong friends. It is as Eugene is now dying that AJ discovers that they are really half brothers. It follows them through tales of their childhood and teenage years and their adult lives that gives you insight into how much they really mean to each other
As the end draws near AJ finds himself wondering if he can in fact do his brother a last favor. It would be a hard task to perform, but does the love of a friend and family member give the courage needed to accomplish th...more
As the end draws near AJ finds himself wondering if he can in fact do his brother a last favor. It would be a hard task to perform, but does the love of a friend and family member give the courage needed to accomplish th...more
1 like · like · see review
I didn't have high hopes for this book. I read some of the original reviews and it didn't seem to have very good ones, however, it was a freebie through BN, so I grabbed it. What a pleasant surprise. It was quite an entertaining read. A little on the predictible side, but not in a horrible way. I really thought the characters were quite colorful and there was quite a bit of humor throughout. All in all a nice quick read.
I really enjoyed this book. It was a free book on the nook, and I started it on the plane after finishing a book I was not crazy about. This book made me laugh out loud. The characters were so bold and in my mind I felt I could see them. I loved AJ with his Louisville SLugger and Eugene on his mountain. I was flying out of the South so that also helped reading this Southern Lit book. Its always nice to have a surprise book. I till look for others books by this author.
This was a "Free Book Friday" book for my Nook. I've had it awhile and decided I was finally in the mood. Since it was free, I didn't put much expectation in it. I loved it! A slice of life story about the friendship of two men living in a small southern town. It was funny, sweet, witty, and I didn't want to put it down. I will definitely read something by this author again. There was language, however.
I don't know if I've ever read a book with a more colorful cast of characters. When a man learns that his best friend is dying, he reminisces about old times while also dealing with the crazy happenings of the present.
I did feel like the story got off track at a couple of points, but I loved the writers voice. The characters are unique, funny, real, and touching. I will be looking for more books by Atkins.
I did feel like the story got off track at a couple of points, but I loved the writers voice. The characters are unique, funny, real, and touching. I will be looking for more books by Atkins.
I absolutely LOVED this book! I don't know if it's because I grew up in Georgia or because I lost someone to pancreatic cancer or because the characters seemed so real, whatever the reason this is definitely a favorite. The author really drew me in to this book, by the end I felt like I had grown up with them and had a beer or three with them sitting on the front porch. I'll admit, I shed a few tears at the end.
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Who has read this book? | 12 | 26 | Oct 03, 2012 06:13pm | |
| When I read "~~~~Prophet" | 1 | 22 | Nov 23, 2008 06:47am |
Raymond L. Atkins resides in Rome, Georgia, where he is an adjunct instructor of English at Georgia Highlands College. He has had a variety of occupations during the past 35 years, but now that the children are grown, he is pursuing his lifelong ambition of being a novelist and writer.
His short stories have been published in Christmas Stories from Georgia, Christmas Through a Child's Eyes, The Lav...more
More about Raymond L. Atkins...
His short stories have been published in Christmas Stories from Georgia, Christmas Through a Child's Eyes, The Lav...more
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Sep 09, 2011 08:37pm