You have to admire Jimmy Carter. Former President of the United States, the man did not end his commitment to America when he lost his re-election bid to Ronald Reagan in 1980. Instead, he redoubled his efforts, working to restore America one home at a time, establishing organizations to promote world health and peace, and writing a number of books.
The Hornet’s Nest, Carter’s first and only novel so far, is in fact the first novel ever written by an American President. It is a work of historical fiction, portraying events that mainly occur in Georgia and the Carolinas before and during the Revolutionary War. The characters, both real and fictional, wind their way through the war, and the novel, all the while providing the reader with a genuine feel for what life might have been like at the time.
Ethan Pratt, our main character and protagonist, is a young boy working in his father’s leather shop in Philadelphia as our story opens. We follow Ethan briefly through his youth until he meets his wife to be, Epsey, and eventually moves with her to North Carolina, there to join his brother and make a life for himself and his family.
In time, however, an unfortunate and heartbreaking turn of political events forces Ethan to reconsider his home in North Carolina, and he and Epsey soon decide to relocate to Georgia. There, the two build a farm on the outskirts of a Quaker settlement, and soon befriend a neighboring couple, Mr. and Mrs. Kindred Morris.
As time goes by, Ethan manages to keep himself and his family isolated from the growing conflict of the Revolutionary War. But when Kindred is killed by British troops (despite the fact that he had remained loyal to the crown), Ethan decides to take an active part in the war. His decision becomes a costly one, one that will change his life forever.
Carter has managed to craft a masterful piece of fiction that brings history home and gives the reader a true feel for what the period must have been like. The fictional Ethan Pratt may be the main character here, but Carter is just as likely to throw in real ones, too: Thomas Brown, Lord Cornwallis, Elijah Clarke, and many more.
When the story opens in Philadelphia, we get a vibrant picture of the daily grind of colonial life. Carter’s detail is amazing. He has clearly done his homework, and The Hornet’s Nest in many respects is as educational as many a history text.
Then too, the author is fair in his treatment of both sides. Don’t expect a lopsided read here: Carter is as likely to show the colonials in a bad light as he is the British, and at times shows the better side of each, too. Life is rarely a clear case of black and white, and Carter often manages to portray the differences between Whigs and Tories somewhere in a nebulous grey area in between.
The depictions of conflict are fascinating and accurate, though the author seems to prefer the strategic to the tactical level. Above all, Carter’s detail shines through in every aspect of the work.
The characters are well developed and very believable, and we grieve when some of them meet their fate. In the latter respect, the novel is realistic. There are no superheroes here to win the day, only men and women fighting to survive.
If the book has a flaw, it is the dialogue. There is less of it than one might expect in a novel, with more narration than interaction between characters. When it does exist, it is sometimes awkward, though this seems to be more of a problem at the beginning of the book.
I certainly enjoyed The Hornet’s Nest. Not only because I am a student of history, but also because it was an entertaining story of early Americans in the South. This is great story telling however you slice it, and should appeal to a wide variety of readers.
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