First Novel and Its Themes

This distinguished first novel, a disturbing drama of the South first published in 1956 by J.P. Lippincott, depicts a father-son conflict intensified by racial inequality and clashing standards of heritage and justice.

Impact and Significance

This book is the best document I know for doing away with racial inequality as it exists today...In the world it will have a real impact.

Eleanor Roosevelt

Critical Reception

A skilled performance...the book sways with affirmations as ancient as the Old Testament.

Carl Sandburg