By Vicky Dickson
“I feel children’s fiction is the most important fiction written,†says John Claude Bemis, “and the most entertaining.â€
As a person who majored in elementary education at UNC and then spent more than 12 years teaching fourth and fifth grade, the Hillsborough author is well acquainted with the impact that books can have on a young person’s life. Growing
up, he’d always been a voracious reader, but didn’t think seriously about writing as a career until he’d begun to teach.
“I suppose I approach my writing the same way I approached the classroom: It’s better to offer students questions rather than answers,†Bemis explains. “I want my stories to make readers curious about history, folklore and the world at large.â€
Being a songwriter and performer as well as an author, Bemis naturally understands the power of entertainment to engage curiosity. It’s a lesson that was taught to him early on, in the stories his grandfather told of hopping trains and hoboing all over the country during the Depression.
“I don’t know if half of what he told me was true,†he says, “but I didn’t care. They were great stories.â€
Those railroad stories no doubt helped inspire Bemis to set his Clockwork Dark trilogy at the end of the 19th century, a time when steam-propelled trains were a vital mode of transportation. Since the author is a big fan of fantasy-adventure stories and wanted to write one set in America, it’s not surprising that he also found inspiration in the fantastic claims and incredible performances of the medicine shows that were so popular back then.
And because, for Bemis, writing means answering the question “what if?,†it’s not hard to see how some of his characters might arise from asking, “What if … a medicine show’s performers had superhuman abilities?†A Mexican girl who talks to the copperhead she carries up her sleeve, a black man with the strength to stop a train, an Indian who walks through fire and a siren who controls men by the power of her songs are among the enchanting answers.
Bemis’ interest in folklore led him to the premise of The Clockwork Dark, when he asked himself what might have happened if the legendary John Henry hadn’t died after defeating the steam drill. And when the author pondered the magnetic qualities of lodestones, imagining one that could lead a boy to his lost father, his young hero began the epic journey detailed in the trilogy, comprised of The Nine Pound Hammer, The Wolf Tree and the forthcoming The White City.
It’s an enthralling tale, made more so by the folk legends and hoodoo beliefs that accompany the action: the bottle trees that can swallow up evil spirits and the roots and herbs that heal grave injuries or are carried in a flannel bag as charms to ward off danger. Readers – adults and children, alike – will find themselves so swept up in Bemis’ stories that they may not even realize how much American history and folklore they’ve learned. They won’t be able to help realizing, though, how eager they are for next spring’s arrival of the trilogy’s conclusion.
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December’s turning out to be a fine month for literary events of all kinds. This coming Friday, from 5 to 7 p.m., check out the Outdoor Gathering at Fearrington Village, celebrating the new Southern Foodways Alliance Community Cookbook. The book, featuring recipes from great Southern cooks of the past and present, should be as fun to read as it is to cook by. Contributors John T. Edge, Bill Smith and Sheri Castle will be on hand to discuss the cookbook, and attendees will enjoy freshly shucked oysters, fried chicken and hot apple cider. The event costs $45, including a copy of the cookbook, or $25 for the gathering alone.
Next up is an appearance by All Things Considered co-host Michele Norris at UNC’s Carroll Hall on Dec. 6 at 3:30 p.m. At the Bull’s Head-sponsored event, Norris will read from her new memoir, The Grace of Silence. The book was inspired by Norris’ wish to uncover hidden conversations about race in America.
Lee Smith is hosting her annual Women’s Center benefit, “Tea with Lee,†at Foster’s Market on Dec. 9 from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Smith’s guests this year are Jill McCorkle and Samia Serageldin, and all three authors will read from their works of short stories before signing books. Tea, coffee and wine will be served with finger sandwiches and desserts. Go to womenspace.org or call 968-4610 to purchase tickets, which cost $55 and include a $25 tax-deductible donation.
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