Dr. John Carson
Erskine President Receives Autographed Copy Of Jimmy Carter’s Revolutionary War Novel
President Jimmy Carter’s February 2002 visit to Dr. John Carson’s 160-year-old home on Abbeville Street in Due West was one of the highlights of the Erskine president’s tenure.
During that visit, Carter mentioned that he was working on a novel about the Revolutionary War that he hoped to have completed by the end of the year.
The fruit of the former president’s labor, titled “The Hornet’s Nest," was released this month. To Carson’s delight, an autographed copy of the novel recently arrived in the mail.
Carter’s work is the first novel ever written by a U.S. president.
“The Hornet’s Nest” tells the story of the Revolutionary War in the South through the eyes of the farmers, British spies and American Indians who fought it.
Carson’s home was once owned by Civil War Capt. James Pratt, Carter’s great-grandfather, and Carter’s grandmother, Nina Pratt Carter, lived in the house until she was 18.
The Erskine president said he’s read about 20 pages into the book so far and it is historical in content. The story revolves around two brothers, both named Pratt. Carter said during his 2002 visit that he was using the family surname for the main character in his book.
According to a review of the book by Publishers Weekly, Carter’s work concentrates on Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas from 1763-83. The review says, “There is a large cast of characters, but the focus is on the families of Ethan and Epsey Pratt and neighbors Kindred and Mavis Morris, backwoods Georgia homesteaders who are swept up, albeit reluctantly, in the revolution against the British.”
The review says Carter “takes a fresh look at this crucial historical period, giving life and originality to a story usually told from the viewpoint of the northern colonies.”
Carson said although Carter mentioned the novel when he visited Due West, he didn’t expect to receive an autographed personal copy.
“We had a couple of his books that we had already purchased and he autographed those (during his visit),” Carson said. “This is one we didn’t have to buy.”
This is not Carson’s first contact with the Nobel Prize winner since the visit, however.
Carson said a couple of weeks after Carter was in Due West, Carson happened to be in South Georgia and decided to worship at the church in Plains where the former president still teaches Sunday school.
“He talked on Jonah,” Carson said. “It was quite interesting. He also graciously agreed to a photo-taking session.”
Carson said he thinks Carter’s effort to sign and send the book “says a lot about him – that he would take the time to remember something like that.”
“The Hornet’s Nest” is Carter’s 18th book.
The 79-year-old Carter told The Associated Press that he got interested in writing the novel when he found a dearth of reliable information about the Revolutionary War in the South, where the most important battles were fought in places such as Savannah, Augusta and Charleston.
“Since my ancestors were involved in it, and I had some reports on what they had done and their experiences, I decided to put it together as a combination of historical figures and fictional characters,” Carter said.
