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Where Trouble Sleeps
In 1950, the small town of Listre, North Carolina, had a population of 511 people. Six-year-old Stephen Toomey had to decide for himself who was going to heaven and who was going to hell. In "Where Trouble Sleeps", Edgerton draws on his own childhood to craft a perfect gem of a novel, one that will surprise and delight his fans, old and new.
Paperback, 288 pages
Published
October 20th 1998
by Ballantine Books
(first published 1997)
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A stranger comes to Listre, looking to see what he can shake out for his own profit. In the meantime, the people in the little town are living their lives. Mainly the story is told from the perspective of a six year old boy who spends a lot of time observing his world.
The best thing about this book was the interview put in as an extra where the author "interviews" his slick, trouble-making character, Jack Umstead. Otherwise, the book was generally easy to read, had enough dialect to feel genuine...more
The best thing about this book was the interview put in as an extra where the author "interviews" his slick, trouble-making character, Jack Umstead. Otherwise, the book was generally easy to read, had enough dialect to feel genuine...more
I love Clyde Edgerton but this book lacked the humor of RANEY or WALKING ACROSS EGYPT. It was a disappointment after reading the reviews saying it was his best book, etc.
I would read on of the above mentioned books before this or THE FLOATPLANE NOTEBOOKS. This is a novel to read when you've read the rest of his work.
I would read on of the above mentioned books before this or THE FLOATPLANE NOTEBOOKS. This is a novel to read when you've read the rest of his work.
This is the first Edgerton I've read, and I was a bit disappointed. The story was ok. The writing was ok. The characters were ok. And that's about it--ok.
I kept feeling that Edgerton wasn't all that enthused about it himself, that it was something he just churned out for some particular reason. Or perhaps this is his style? Anyway, I do believe that in the hands of another writer--someone like fanny flagg it would have been much, much better.
I kept feeling that Edgerton wasn't all that enthused about it himself, that it was something he just churned out for some particular reason. Or perhaps this is his style? Anyway, I do believe that in the hands of another writer--someone like fanny flagg it would have been much, much better.
Small-town North Carolina meets a bad apple who's out to seduce the town's women and rob everyone else, even the Baptist church. Does Listre stand a chance? Clyde Edgerton's hamlet is drawn with love and humor. In Listre, everyone knows everyone else's bidness, from the shotgun-toting old maid to the preacher who sins in his heart to the dog that forecasts the weather. Without giving anything away, I'll just note that small town doesn't mean simple-minded. The characters in Where Trouble Sleeps...more
Pretty good novel.
From back cover:
"Here, evil comes to sleepy Listre, N.C., circa 1950, in the form of a stranger with a pencil-thin mustache and a trunkful of dirty movies. Listre is the kind of rustic crossroads where the most exciting event in years was a collision between a mule and a pickup truck, where boys slip over to the Gulf station for a Nehi and a peek at the pinup calendar, and where everybody knows everybody else's secrets. It's the kind of place, in other words, where it seems lik...more
From back cover:
"Here, evil comes to sleepy Listre, N.C., circa 1950, in the form of a stranger with a pencil-thin mustache and a trunkful of dirty movies. Listre is the kind of rustic crossroads where the most exciting event in years was a collision between a mule and a pickup truck, where boys slip over to the Gulf station for a Nehi and a peek at the pinup calendar, and where everybody knows everybody else's secrets. It's the kind of place, in other words, where it seems lik...more
I'm not sure what to say about this book. I simply loved Edgerton's "Walking Across Egypt," and I was hoping to be similarly entertained. I was not. This time, Listre, North Carolina, seemed peopled with only weirdos, not one of whom I could relate to or completely understand. The con-man drifter who stirs things up was believable, but the rest of the characters were not. I read the whole book hoping that at some point I'd grow to love it, but I'm not sure I even liked it all that much. A disapp...more
(Notes written in 1997) This book is about a small southern community in 1950 and what happens when a dishonest outsider comes to town. An honest approach to small-town people and their flaws without completely sterotyping them, but I feel that it lacks the humor and appeal of Edgerton's Raney.
Dec 26, 2010
Michelle
marked it as to-read
Community viewpoint arrived at via individual tellers of the tale of the town of Listre, NC, summer 1950s. Rec. in Honey
Pretty good...in an odd sort of way. It's a snapshot of a small town, visited by a stranger with some dishonorable intentions.
Weird. Don't know what else to say. It had a North Carolina connection but just strange.
This was a quirky book about a small southern N.C. town. They have a strange visitor (Jack Umstead) who has come to scope out the place and maybe steal something. The author introduces several people who live in the town, however, he doesn’t really develop them. They just play the parts of town folk. The stranger tries to fit in and even gets friendly with some of the people in town before he does his evil deed. The book is suppose to be funny and it is in some parts. I just didn’t think it was...more
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Where's the true South in this southern book? I just don't get it.
Typical odd characters in a funny, little NC town
Read for Southern Voices Book Club 11/2007
Good character development.
This is a real hoot--Edgerton at his best.
Jul 09, 2012
Leigh
added it
Still reading
This book wasn't hitting on much for me. I don't think the title has much of anything to do with the book. "Trouble is the name of a bulldog who can predict if it will rain or not. He's mentioned 3 times in the book.
The town of Listre is located in the deep south where everyone knows everyone else's business and life centers around the church.
The story centers around a few days in the life of 7yr old boy and stranger happens into town. The stranger is anything but an honest person.
The town of Listre is located in the deep south where everyone knows everyone else's business and life centers around the church.
The story centers around a few days in the life of 7yr old boy and stranger happens into town. The stranger is anything but an honest person.
Really funny- It starts off in a really small town in the 50s on a day when a housewife brings her 6-year-old son and his friend to the local prison to see the electric chair. She does this in the hope that it will scare the both of them from committing any sins. Meanwhile, a seedy character is on his way to this small town, where everyone knows each other, driving a stolen car. Find out what happens.....
The setting drove the story and kept me entertained. The characters and plot did not. It was a slow moving book, but it had some great scenes. I can't say that I particularly recommend Where Trouble Sleeps, but I look forward to reading more of Edgerton's work.
I picked this book up awhile ago at a yardsale simply because it was a Ballentine, and I always seem to enjoy their "Reader's Circle" books. Unfortunately, this is the first one that I haven't liked AT ALL. The story was disjointed and just plain weird.
How can I resist a book with schematic plans reflecting changes over time to the downtown intersection bracketing the story? =) Edgerton writes well about the internal workings of his character and their interactions with their place.
Not my favorite Clyde Edgerton book. I am a Big fan of Lunch at the Picadilly and Walking Across Egypt.
Chilling novel about that has echoes of Flannery's treatment of the South
I love Clyde Edgerton books. Homespun and charming characters.
Couldn’t do this at all right now.
kind of boring and nothing fancy.
Jun 16, 2013
Jennifer
marked it as to-read
Jun 12, 2013
Joandier
marked it as to-read
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Clyde Edgerton is widely considered one of the premier novelists working in the Southern tradition today, often compared with such masters as Eudora Welty and Flannery O'Connor.
Although most of his books deal with adult concerns--marriage, aging, birth and death--Edgerton's work is most profoundly about family. In books such as Raney, Walking Across Egypt, The Floatplane Notebooks, and Killer Dill...more
More about Clyde Edgerton...
Although most of his books deal with adult concerns--marriage, aging, birth and death--Edgerton's work is most profoundly about family. In books such as Raney, Walking Across Egypt, The Floatplane Notebooks, and Killer Dill...more
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