An Hour Before Daylight : Memories Of A Rural Boyhood

Additional An Hour Before Daylight : Memories Of A Rural Boyhood Information

In an American story of enduring importance, Jimmy Carter re-creates his Depression-era boyhood on a Georgia farm, before the civil rights movement that changed it and the country.

In what is sure to become a classic, Carter writes about the powerful rhythms of countryside and community. Along the way, he offers an unforgettable portrait of his father, a brilliant farmer and strict segregationist who treated black workers with his own brand of "separate" respect and fairness, and his strong-willed mother, a nurse who cared for all in need -- regardless of their position in the community.

Carter describes the people who shaped his early life, only two of them white: his eccentric relatives who sometimes caused the boy to examine his heritage with dismay; the boyhood friends with whom he hunted and worked the farm, but who could not attend the same school; and the eminent black bishop who refused to come to the Carters' back door but who would stand in the front yard discussing crops and politics with Jimmy's father.

Carter's clean and eloquent prose evokes a time when the cycles of life were predictable and simple and the rules were heartbreaking and complex. In his singular voice and with a novelist's gift for detail, Jimmy Carter creates a sensitive portrait of an era that shaped the nation.

An Hour Before Daylight is destined to stand with other timeless works of American literature.

What Customers Say About An Hour Before Daylight : Memories Of A Rural Boyhood:

Just picking up this book transports me to a simpler time. If I can't wind down from a frantic day, I open this book to any page and it calms me down. Last night, I learned from President Carter where buttermilk comes from. This is one of my top five favorite books of all time.

This is a truly remarkable memoir describing the depression-era South. A must read, even if you are not a fan of Jimmy Carter.

This is a very enjoyable book. He grew up learning to work for what he wanted. I love to read about the true South. Jimmy Carter is a man to be admired. He shows great respect for others. A very good read.

AN HOUR BEFORE DAYLIGHT however is the first full memoir that I've read by Jimmy Carter (the other books were books on Faith), and seeing the world of his childhood, depression era Georgia, has been insightful. Carter also talks about his siblings, mostly referring to his sisters Ruth and Gloria (Billy came along much later, but he is mentioned in the book, in particular in regards to his tragic early death). AN HOUR BEFORE DAYLIGHT by Jimmy CarterOctober 29, 2007Rating: 4/5 StarsI've now read several books written by President Jimmy Carter and I've enjoyed them all. And while some of these attitudes may have prevailed even in the Carter household, he was also taught to treat blacks with respect, and most of his childhood friends were the black children of the hired hands they had on their farm. He's seen a lot in his life and has used what he learned to enrich others and help those who need it. This childhood he had is what shaped him into the giving person he is today. Hard work was the ethic they lived by, but Jimmy Carter also had stories to tell about childhood antics and enjoying life on the farm.

AN HOUR BEFORE DAYLIGHT is not the perfect book. What I love about his books is his personal touch he lends to them. He looked up to his father, and greatly admired his mother, a woman who did so much in her later years and became famous in her own right (some of the stories Jimmy relates are quite humorous, including her love of the Brooklyn Dodgers, later the LA dodgers and her friendship with the team). Living in the South during this time meant that blacks were separate from whites, and whites were superior to blacks. The Carters, compared to many of their neighbors at the time, did well in farming and were very resourceful in all they endeavored. I found a lot of it to be rather dry reading, but I still enjoyed the anecdotes and stories that Jimmy Carter wrote about his growing up years. I am slowly going through Carter's library of books and look forward to the next one.

Flesh out that relationship a bit more.Just my 2 cents. Lots of discussion about the relatively tolerant household in which he was raised, but lots of apology at the same time about how racism was ubiquitous at the time and not really perceived by his family or by others as a wrong to be righted.

While I agree that it is well-executed in the main, it doesn't score higher with me on a few grounds.One: I felt there was a need for more fastidious editing. I've been wanting to read one or more of President Carter's books for a long time and decided to begin with this one.

In any case, I felt like the President did not discuss enough how his upbringing resulted in his being the man he is today as far as race relations are concerned. The book was by no means too long, but there was repetition and disordered content.Two: Way too much detail in some of the more mundane and unpleasant sections, in particular discussions of minutiae of small-town agribusiness dealings as well as graphic detail of livestock issues including slaughtering and castrating.

TMI.Three: This is a half-hearted complaint, for I realize this isn't the book where these matters would likely be discussed considering the author has several other memoirs addressing other periods of his life (doesn't he). I don't know, I guess I'm rambling here, but I would have liked to have read content along the lines of "and these boyhood experiences shaped my perceptions in such a way that I wanted to make a difference in my public service career" and also I woulda liked to have read about how he connects his religious beliefs with his liberal leanings.

In any event, the book was a quick read and I am very glad I got around to reading it.