cover image Where I'm Bound

Where I'm Bound

Allen B. Ballard. Simon & Schuster, $24 (320pp) ISBN 978-0-684-87031-1

Nonfiction author Ballard (The Education of Black Folk), a history and African-American studies professor, combines both areas of expertise in his debut novel, to show what life was like for black cavalry scout Joe Duckett and an all-black regiment during the Civil War. Duckett flees a harsh Louisiana plantation in 1863 to join up with Union troops fighting the Confederates, leaving behind a wife, Zenobia, and daughter Cally. His other two children were sold to another slave holder, and Joe's dream of reuniting his whole family is the heart of the narrative. Ballard chooses to tell Joe's story through a chorus of voices, which provide the viewpoints of both enslaved and freed African-Americans, as the conflict finally swings in favor of the North. Zenobia, loyal to Joe, dodges the attentions of Drayton, a black overseer, but when the owners of Kenworthy plantation decide to move their human chattel into Alabama to avoid the advancing Yankees, Zenobia accepts the chance offered by Drayton to keep her family geographically closer to possible freedom. The shattered life of Maj. Richard Kenworthy provides the Confederate point of view, as Kenworthy raids abandoned plantations along the Mississippi. Ballard's well-researched and vivid portrayal recreates the decline of the Old South and delves into the psychology of racism not only on the part of the Confederacy, but also among many Yankee soldiers who resisted viewing their black troops in human terms. Avoiding stereotypes, Ballard contextualizes the main characters historically, and gives them nuanced personalities and expressive dialogue. Despite a series of predictable, overly romanticized final scenes, This is a powerful novel about a soldier fighting in a war that would determine his personal destiny and that of a young nation. Agent, Owen Laster. (Oct.)