The Clansman, by Thomas Dixon, Jr. (HC, poor condition, 1941, $.50)
Dixon dedicated his book to his uncle, a Grand Titan of the Invisible Empire of the Ku Klux Klan, so it is no surprise who the heroes of this book are. Normally I would put a book in this condition out for free. Instead I read it, cringing all the way to the ending when the KKK "saves Civilization", and "redeems the South from shame".
It's a predictable plot. Girl meets Rebel boy. Boy is going to die. Girl goes to Lincoln and gets pardon. Boy goes home to the South. Girl, brother, and father go to the South. Girl's father, a famous abolitionist, is a really bad man. Girl starts to sympathize with the South. Brother starts to really sympathize with the South. Father goes after Rebel boy. Brother is captured instead. Father realizes the error of his ways. Boy saves brother. Girl and boy pledge eternal love to each other and the South. THE END.
I would like to think the Klan existed only in the past. Too bad that's not the case. The KKK is still alive, and not just in the south. Instead of one unified group, there are now many small independent ones, with an estimated total membership of 6-10,000. Many of the groups now have links with neo-Nazi groups, and many are actively anti-immigration. The Klan is located almost entirely in the US, but with small branches in Canada, Britain, and Australia. Isn't it nice when we export our culture!
Look for this scary book in the fiction section, avail. 3/23.
