The Committee
The Committee by Sterling Watson, published by Akashic Books in 2020, is a thought-provoking narrative set in the late 1950s in Gainesville, Florida. This edition spans 351 pages and is presented in English. The story unfolds in a seemingly ordinary university town, where the lives of professors, students, and townspeople are under the watchful eye of a clandestine group known as the Committee. This group employs government and police powers to investigate and control the community, revealing the underlying tensions and fears that disrupt everyday life.
Readers will find a rich exploration of themes such as intolerance, prejudice, and the struggle for freedom. The Committee creates an atmosphere of paranoia, pitting friends against each other and threatening careers and lives. The narrative is grounded in actual historical events and reflects the political, cultural, and class turmoil of the era. Through its portrayal of love, betrayal, and the fight against oppression, this book delves into the complexities of human relationships and the impact of societal pressures on individual choices.
Official synopsis Publisher
The 2021 Southern Literary Review Book of the Year
“A captivating read and an absorbing tale about the abuses that can arise from intolerance and prejudice. It carries a warning from the past to the siloed, fractured communities of today.” –Historical Novel Society
In the late 1950s, Gainesville, Florida, seems to be a sleepy university town. Its residents live, by outward appearances, ordinary lives. And yet the town is far from ordinary. The most private acts of professors, students, townspeople rich and poor, and politicians are under the close scrutiny of a shadowy group of men–the Committee–who use the powers of government and the police to investigate, threaten, and control this increasingly fearful community.
The Committee pits friends against friends and threatens careers and lives in a struggle for the soul of a town, a university, and an ideal. Based on actual historical events and set against the backdrop of political, cultural, and class turmoil, this is a story of love–both licit and hidden–war, friendship, betrayal, compromise, and finally the necessity to stand firm against the encroachments upon freedom by men who believe they are doing God’s and the government’s righteous work.
Author
Publisher
Topics
FAQ
What is “The Committee” about?
Who is the author of “The Committee”?
When was “The Committee” published?
What is the ISBN for “The Committee”?
What are the book details (language, pages, edition)?
