A Review of Douglas Young’s second novel Due South (2023)
“Tell about the South. What’s it like there. What do they do there. Why do they live there. Why do they live at all.”
-William Faulkner, Absalom, Absalom!
Storytelling is big in the southern states. As the great journalist Charles Kuralt put it: “A true Southerner will never say in 2-3 words what can better be said in 10-12.” When it comes to matters of the heart or loins, the more details the better the story.
Due South tells a tale of Fitzhugh Rainwater
The heart and loins are sometimes connected, and that is a focal point of the story in Douglas Young’s second novel, Due South. It’s a light read, a romantic “dramedy,” where we meet the main character Fitzhugh Rainwater. He’s a smart, young graduate student and teaching assistant. Fitzhugh is not completely comfortable around the opposite sex.
Fitzhugh is a stark contrast from his best friend, Zada McMayer. She’s more than comfortable with the opposite sex and doesn’t try to hide it. In friendship, frequently opposites attract. Even without realizing it, we’re always looking for someone to fill our gaps and complement our ways.
However, there is such a thing as “too different.” Fitzhugh and Zada, as it turns out were meant for friendship and nothing more. Fitzhugh falls for the beautiful Cleonia Lovetree, one of his students.
Side note. You may notice Young’s affinity for unusual names. The south, after all is a place where eccentricity tends to be celebrated.
Due South is set in a small, southern college town
The title of Young’s sophomore fictional work comes from the setting: Due South is the small southern college town he dreamed up, but it sure felt real to me. Even though it was a work of fiction, the book conjured up memories of being in plenty of places just like it.
Most people attend college at a time when they are glowing with the vim and vigor of youth, but with a new absence from adult supervision. Ostensibly, you are the adult. Reading the book reminded me that all of my professors were, or are, flesh and bone. I wondered, and am surprised I never had before, just how many professors couldn’t help but notice a particular student.
Especially on any campus in the south. I recall meeting an equally young guy probably some 20 years ago. Walking outside of a particularly famous University campus, I couldn’t help, but notice his strong New England accent. His head on a swivel, he remarked, “We don’t have them like this where I go to school.” Interpret that how you want to. There are lovely people everywhere, but I’ve never heard of a Northern belle.
The book explores different kinds of relationships
There are all manners of attractions between professors and students. Most of them are scholarly. Learning, reading and sharing thoughts can even become somewhat intimate. Robert McCready told me recently: “I think professors are attracted to students because they want to find someone who they can charm with their knowledge and lectures.” The Southern writer went on: “They become attracted to students willing to engage with the lesson, that the professors totally control. And people love other people who will indulge them their whimsies.”
Fair point Robert, but what happens if the person indulging your whimsies also happens to be admittedly attractive? I certainly pondered this when reading Due South. It’s easy-to-read, and plentiful with humor. What perhaps surprised me though, is how bawdy the book can be. I’m not saying it’s lurid, but it is unabashed when discussing those manners of the heart, or maybe more accurately, the loins.
Due South accurately portrays the American South
The other thing Due South got me to think about was the nature of Southeastern Americans, something that came up in my conversation with Robert McCready. He remarked: “The south brings out my protective side because people underestimate us and we believe it. We aren’t just wet, old, and slow, but are unique and welcoming and faithful, full of people dealing with the reality of living and the highs and lows that life brings.” Hearing him say this reminded me of Due South and the books authenticity in capturing the southland’s humid inhabitants. Young writes about what he knows.
Due South makes for amusing reading. You’ll find the characters endearing and very real. They may remind you of someone you know, and at times yourself. Are you looking for a beach read? For those of you lucky enough to be heading due south, it may be a great choice for you.
P.S.—The aerial photograph used on the cover of Due South seemed so familiar. It felt like it could have been so many places, but if you are wondering… that is Athens, Georgia.
Title: Due South
Author: Douglas Young
Publisher: Newman Springs Publishing, Inc.
Publication date: January 6, 2023
Softcover: 276 pages
