Michael Almond’s “The Tannery” is Racial Injustice in the post-Reconstruction South
Podcast: Download (Duration: 36:08 — 33.1MB)
In this episode 264, we visit with Michael Almond, author of “The Tannery,” a story of racial injustice in 1900 in Wilkes County, North Carolina.
The Tannery transports readers to the turbulent world of the post-Reconstruction South. Reflecting issues prominent in today’s headlines, themes of Black voter suppression and intimidation, the violence and depravity of vigilante “justice,” and the rise of Jim Crow drive the narrative to its dramatic and surprising conclusion.
Frye Gaillard, civil rights historian, author of “A Hard Rain: America in the 1960s,” says this about the book: “Riveting…. In his debut novel, Michael Almond has given us a page-turner. Far more than a legal thriller, though it is that, The Tannery is historical fiction at its finest – a story set near the turn of the 20th Century in North Carolina. Some of this tale will sound disturbingly familiar to readers in the 21st Century, all the more reason to consider its lessons. History can come alive in a great work of fiction. This is one of those times.”
Connect With the Author
About the Author:
Michael A. Almond, a retired attorney, was raised in the small town of Pilot Mountain in the Piedmont foothills of North Carolina. He received his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Morehead Scholar; Morehead Law Fellow), and was a Fulbright Scholar in political science at the University of Mannheim, Germany.
During his years as an international business lawyer, he was awarded the prestigious Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany for “outstanding commitment in fostering relations between the United States and the Federal Republic of Germany.”
An avid reader and student of Southern history and literature, he currently lives on a farm with his wife, Helen Ruth, in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. The Tannery is his debut novel.
Praise for The Tannery
This fast-paced courtroom drama is laced with the truth of an early 1900’s past gone backward. The Tannery will have readers wondering until the very end whether there is any hope for a sixteen-year-old Black boy on trial for murder and the young White lawyer who represents him.
– Landis Wade, trial lawyer, host of Charlotte Readers Podcast, and author of The Christmas Courtroom Trilogy.
In his debut novel, Michael Almond turns a penetrating and sympathetic eye to one of the darker, less-known chapters in North Carolina history. You’ll feel like you’re in the courtroom with young Virgil Wade as his attorney Ben Waterman fights for justice against seemingly impossible odds.
– Kim Wright, author of Last Ride to Graceland, winner of the Willie Morris Award for Southern Fiction
With the heart of a storyteller and the mind of a historian, Michael Almond has written a passionate novel about murder, race, and justice (or lack thereof) in the early days of the Jim Crow South. This is a vexing tale, vivid and haunting. You’ll be transported far beyond your reading chair.
– Judy Goldman, author of Together: A Memoir of a Marriage and a Medical Mishap and the forthcoming memoir, Child
Extra Stuff
Sign up for The Book Report for free on the Home page. We won’t spam you. That takes too much time.
Receive exclusive audio content when you become a supporter of the podcast for a small monthly contribution. You will be able to access author interviews on the craft and business of writing and other creative topics. Check out the offerings on the Exclusive Content Page or scroll through what’s available at the Patreon page.
Use promo code Charlottereader (all one word) to get a free audiobook when you join Libro.fm, the audiobook provider that supports independent book stores.
Meet Our Networks:
Queen City Podcast Network is a carefully selected collection of more than two dozen podcasts produced in and centering around Charlotte, North Carolina focused on news, non-profits, entertainment, literature, sports, food, culture, health and wellness, and comedy.
Authors on the Air Global Radio Network is an international digital media corporation comprised of more than two dozen radio talk shows, podcasts, & book reviewers interested in speaking to writers in all genres and other creative people.
Meet Our Team:
Learn About Our Social Media Team – Social Grit Marketing
Learn About Our Publicity Manager – Spellbound Public Relations
Learn about our Web Master – TM Petaccia
Thank you for listening!