Home Fires Burning

The clatter of a moody Linotype ready to spit lead at the ceiling. The rattle of a typewriter. The eye-watering smell of ink on a hot summer evening, press night. The taste of good whiskey, shared with an old friend at the other side of the desk. The clutter that seems to be the required décor for any tradition-abiding hometown newspaper office. If there's one thing that author Robert Inman has down pat, it's the atmosphere of a community newspaper, circa 1944. And he uses that setting as an integral part of a story that is both comic and tragic, the story of Jake Tibbetts, the cranky owner/editor of a small-town southern weekly inherited from his grandfather, a Confederate war hero. Jake and wife Pastine are raising their grandson, Lonnie, whose alcoholic, irresponsible father Henry is disowned, disinherited and thoroughly despised by Jake. Henry joined up with the National Guard. He's fighting in a hellhole called Bastogne. In the meantime, Jake handles all matters on the homefront in his usual manner, stubbornly and cynically trying to control friends, family and the town. "Home Fires Burning" is a story that surprises (the first chapter is a fooler), amuses with its cast of cornball characters, thrills with its flashbacks to the Civil War, and ultimately delivers thought-provoking messages about honor, the futility of foolish pride, and forgiveness. It's worthy of your "must read" list.

"Home Fires Burning" is a wonderful book about the snarls and knots of our family ties, the mental imprint of the past that edits our daily lives, and day-to-day experience of small-town Southerners surviving and struggling while a Great War rages far away. Jake Tibbetts is a somewhat crotchety, stubborn maverick who edits the local newspaper. He is troubled by his estranged relationship with his son, who has gone overseas to fight for his country. Inman nicely details the history of this family's father-son relationships down through the years and their effects on people from boyhood to their twilight years. Vivid characters and relationships abound, and the portrayal of small-town life in the 1940s is slightly sentimental yet realistic. Inman seems to go out of his way to create strange first names, which I thought went a bit overboard: Tunstall, Ideal, Rosh, Biscuit, Fog, Pastine (any Johns in town?), but this is a minor quibble. Also minor: I don't always believe that Jake is eloquent enough to write for a newspaper, but it's clear Inman does know the ins and outs of the business in the '40s; also, the scenes late in the book where a character comes back from the war seem incomplete and impact-less. Still, this is a marvelous book that will stay with you. Tibbetts' complex character and the genuine webs of interaction among the other townspeople are a great achievement. The book probably could have used a slightly better editor, but is in general highly recommended.

As an avid reader, I must declare this as one of the best books I have ever read. Well written and engaging, it is a colorful story that I will encourage others to read. I'll put it as the #3 book of all I've ever read. (#1 being _Watership Down_ and #2 being _Travels with Charley_.)

Inman does a wonderful job of telling the story and developing his main characters. A must read for any reader who is nostalgic about their Southern heritage.