Digital Scholarship and Initiatives

Em Jojohn, Lumbee (p. 34), is given to lengthy, rambling trips followed by drunken binges when he returns to Quarrytown, Georgia.  He earns money by killing rats and by construction work.  He befriends Earl, the fourteen-year-old main character, teaching him to climb trees, swim, and overcome his fear of the dark.  He “lives for the moment he’s in, and lets the rest slide by” (p. 191), a characteristic that has been noted among Lumbees (see John Gregory Peck, "Urban station—Migration of the Lumbee Indians," dissertation, 1972).  Em experiences some problems with racial identity (see pp. 197-200, 312, and 321-22).  In chapter 31, Quarrytown’s historical society undertakes a search for the grave of Easter Robinson, a historical figure somewhat reminiscent of Henry Berry Lowry.  Jojohn is more like Henry Berry Lowry (as Reising also notes in bibliography entry 384), particularly at the end of the novel.  He uses his prodigious fighting abilities to resolve a political situation in Quarrytown and benefit oppressed residents of all races.  Ironically, the resolution probably ended Jojohn’s life.