Since the victims are black, few white people in the area are particularly interested in bringing their killer to justice. But he presses on, driven by his innate decency and sense of duty. More bodies appear, all demonstrating the same depraved savagery, and it's clear that Crane, who is not a trained investigator, is out of his depth. When the children, during an outing in the woods, discover the mutilated body of a black prostitute, their father begins an investigation that drives the narrative of the book. His father, Jacob Crane, was a farmer who supplemented his meager income by running a barber shop and serving as the town constable. In 1933 Harry, then 13, lived in a shack in the East Texas woods with his parents and his 9-year-old sister, Tom (for Thomasina). The story is told in flashback by an elderly Harry Crane, who recalls his childhood adventure from the confines of the nursing home where he has gone to finish out his life. All the elements for an outstanding read are there, but in the end The Bottoms doesn't quite measure up to its considerable promise. The novel has other qualities to recommend it: two brave and adventurous children who serve as the principal characters, a plot full of surprise and intrigue, even a sinister, mythological forest creature called the Goat Man.
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