Every two years The Hub City Press in Spartanburg, SC hosts and publishes a South Carolina First Novel Competition. In 2014 the winner was Minnow by James E. McTeer, II.
The press’s website states it best: “Hub City Press is a
non-profit independent press in Spartanburg, SC that publishes well-crafted,
high-quality works by new and established Southern authors. We are committed to
high-caliber novels, short stories, poetry, memoir, and works emphasizing
regional culture and history. We are particularly interested in books with a
strong sense of place."
Minnow certainly lives up
to Hub City’s reputation for producing fine literature. The story disarms by
introducing the reader to Minnow, whom you believe to be an average young boy.
You learn very early on that his father is dreadfully ill and may not live
without a certain medicine. Minnow is given the task of getting the medicine at
the pharmacy by his mother. Would it were so easy. This is only the beginning.
As
the story progresses, McTeer continually raises the stakes and the challenges
to Minnow and you watch as he faces each one. It becomes a story of courage,
devotion and fortitude. Warning: Some of the hurdles are so devastating, it was difficult to
read.
The
story takes place in Charleston and in the outer sea-islands off the coast of
South Carolina. The places were so richly drawn that not only did you feel you
accompanied Minnow on his journey, but the locations actually became another
character. It was beautifully done. Recommend.
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