The legends say something happened in Chaneysville. "The Chaneysville Incident" is the powerful story of one man's obsession with discovering wh... read full description
reviews
Apr 14, 2008
Erik
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With the exception of a couple of novels by Toni Morrison, I think this novel is the best by a black author since INVISIBLE MAN. High praise, I know, but it's incredible, and I'm not sure why it's not touted and pushed more often--perhaps because the protagonist never conforms and is never fully likeable. But that's what I like about him and this book. I want a novel to challenge me, not reaffirm me, and I want to be unsettled. This book is terrific.
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Dec 13, 2011
Tamora
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John Washington, African-American scholar and son of a Baptist minister, comes home to his small, southern Pennsylvania town--Chaneysville--to bury his father and say goodbye to the old man who taught him about the hills and history of the area, the man he felt more sympathy with and for than his upright, moralistic father. His academic career is stalled at this time, but he feels it get a boost when he recalls his friend's tales about a group of runaway slave who reached the town, only to be b
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Feb 26, 2010
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Forgotten Histories
Feb 21 2010, 4:30 PM ET
I started off the week talking about allegory and Ralph Ellison, so it's only right that I spend a little time talking about a work that got pegged as a successor to Invisible Man. Written by David Bradley, The Chaneysville Incident hit bookshelves in 1981. At least one review compared it favorably to Ellison's signature work and the two of them share a feverish quality that comes from wrestling with the long-ter More...
Forgotten Histories
Feb 21 2010, 4:30 PM ET
I started off the week talking about allegory and Ralph Ellison, so it's only right that I spend a little time talking about a work that got pegged as a successor to Invisible Man. Written by David Bradley, The Chaneysville Incident hit bookshelves in 1981. At least one review compared it favorably to Ellison's signature work and the two of them share a feverish quality that comes from wrestling with the long-ter More...
Sep 24, 2009
Jeremy
rated it: 
Hey, I would've loved it if this book sucked.
One cannot help seeing its author in its protagonist, unforgiving, yet utterly cracked and flawed to the point where one wonders why anyone would spend time and/or affection on such an unrepentant misanthrope.
One really cool thing about reading this after taking a course with Mr. Bradley: His magnum opus is modeled after Melville's Moby Dick , so you see in these pages what he means when he says "Moby Dick is a master te More...
One cannot help seeing its author in its protagonist, unforgiving, yet utterly cracked and flawed to the point where one wonders why anyone would spend time and/or affection on such an unrepentant misanthrope.
One really cool thing about reading this after taking a course with Mr. Bradley: His magnum opus is modeled after Melville's Moby Dick , so you see in these pages what he means when he says "Moby Dick is a master te More...
Dec 27, 2008
Elizabeth
rated it:
This is hands down one of my favorite novels, ever. While it's true that I am a bit of a modern American racial history geek, I appreciated it not simply for Bradley's impressive accomplishment in creating such a detailed and moving work of historical fiction. I read this book about a year ago, and what has stayed with me the most is how incredibly evocative Bradley's descriptions of winter are. Not since Ethan Frome (which I admit is totally depressing) have I read something which so perfectly
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Dec 31, 2011
Anais
rated it: 
This book was boring. I had to read it for class and I fell a bit behind because I was not motivated to read it. Certain parts of the story was interesting such as the Albino guy acting as if he was white. Also the concepts presented within this story were also interesting: the act of commiting suicide as a way of taking control of one's destiny; suicide is not the end but the beginning of another journey. It's literary fiction, it makes you think, and it is wonderfully written. It is a great bo
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Jan 04, 2012
Steve
rated it:
For me this is the definitive Afro-American Novel. I know everyone is sold on "Invisible Man" or "Song of Solomon". "Invisible Man" is a great novel, but it deals with the Afro-American as an idea, a philosophical construct in a Manichean society. "The Chaneysville Incident" is a realistic tale of a modern black man struggling to understand where he came from and how it shaped him. David Bradley tells the story of Historian John Washington, a brilliant sch
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Aug 03, 2011
Kurt
rated it:
The story is a mystery within a mystery. Present-day black historian John Washington is trying to figure out what happened to his father, who died of a gunshot wound near a farm. His father, Moses, in turn had been trying to figure out something about his own grandfather, C.K., a black man who had freed himself from slavery but who disappeared before the Civil War. John will not exorcize his own demons until he solves this double-riddle.
There are deep and resonating themes in this More...
There are deep and resonating themes in this More...
Oct 21, 2010
Normalyn
rated it:
It's somewhat a boring read in some parts and it is maybe because I'm not interested in history and this book has a lot of it since the main character is a historian. At times, I would really have to push myself to read it. I always make sure that when I start a book, I read it to the end. That's just how I read. However, I like the story, the mystery of it, the ending too. It's a look into the controversial topic of black history and I'm just relieved that it is not happening now. We are all br
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May 29, 2011
Peggy Eldridge
rated it:
This book literally changed my life. The perspective, the history, the strength of the characters and the strength of character have rare literary comparison. I recommend it to anyone who is not afraid to travel within and be responsible for what they find.
May 26, 2010
Discovering
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Very Imaginative at the end...loved the ending. The entire book shows a close relation to real life struggles and how past experiences dictate our lives. It's so important to deal with situations or they will deal with you...excellecnt work
Apr 19, 2011
Alex
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a great, great novel, and I love the University City connection; i'm pretty sure the narrator is living by the 40th Street subway-surface line and listening to the 11, 13, 34 et al in the background.
Aug 05, 2011
The idea of revealing the essence of historiography is neat: there's no truth; only facts. And the job of a historian is to interpret facts rather than looking for one answer to everything.
Jan 15, 2012
Amy
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Incredible amount of back history - since I'm from east coast and know a little of the area he is talking about I found the story very interesting. Lots going on in this book.
Feb 23, 2009
Justin
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I'm probably biased because it's by a writer from my town about my home area, but I still think it's great.
Mar 25, 2011
Julie
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This book has never left me. I'm haunted. Anyone who has read it, I'd love to discuss the ending with you.
Sep 11, 2010
This guy appears in Ken Burns' documentary "Mark Twain," where he comments on Mark Twain's views of race.
Jun 19, 2007
Steven
rated it:
This book was amazing. I read this book in college and on the day it was assigned my professor offered to pay five bucks to anyone who finished the book and didn't love it. The entire class finished it, no one asked for five bucks. The first fifty pages or so are a bit hard to get through. But if you make it, you will be rewarded for life. I have trouble reading just about any book at this point and not comparing it to the dense enjoyment of "The Chaneysville Incident".
Oct 09, 2009
Babydoll
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This was a spectacular novel that perpetually engages the reader into a journey of a historian who investigates the death of his father and discovers the cause of death of his past ancestors. This is a magnificent novel for those who enjoy a well written novel that includes a rich array of history, particularly during the age of slavery and the Underground Railroad. David Bradley is a talented writer who presents a novel full of love, hate, mystery, and discovery.
Jul 30, 2008
Jamie
rated it:
Very moving. Visually and viscerally evocative. A friend who has an interdisciplinary Phd in Sociology and English (emphasis in African American Studies) once said that "history" people love this book, and "literature" folks don't. I fall into the cultural studies camp most often, with a populist history bent. It will always be in my top ten.
Jan 20, 2008
Pete
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all around good book. written from the perspective of a black man in a small racist town. makes you think about the evolution of racisism. plus, set in my hometown, so it was fun to recognize local landmarks. wee!
Jul 02, 2009
Found this in the free books bin at the library. Didn't really grab me; didn't seem as interesting as the blurb promised. Has an amusing if slightly dated comparison of travel by air, train, and bus.
Mar 12, 2008
Les
rated it:
This book has it all, great characters, good structure, depth and texture, and a Klan lynching foiled. Won the Pen/Faulkner, too.
Feb 11, 2012
Feb 01, 2012
