<p>Jimmy Lee Hickam grew upalong Red Dog Road, a dead-end strip of gravel and mud buried deep in the bowelsof Appalachian Ohio. It is the poorest road, in the poorest county, in thepoorest region of the state. To make things worse, the name Hickam issynonymous with trouble. Jimmy Lee hails from a heathen mix of thieves,moonshiners, drunkards, and general anti-socials that for decades have clung toboth the hardscrabble hills and the iron bars of every jail cell in the region.This life, Jimmy Lee believes, is his destiny, someday working with hisdrunkard father at the sawmill, or sitting next to his arsonist brother in thepenitentiary. There aren’t many options if your last name is Hickam. </p><p>An inspiring coach and JimmyLee's ability to play football are the only things motivating him toreturn for his junior year of high school—until his visionary English teachercuts him a break and preserves his eligibility for the coming footballseason. To thank her, Jimmy Lee writes a winning essay in the high school writingcontest. When irate parents and the baffled administration claim he hascheated, his teacher is inspired to take his writing talent as far asit can go, showing him the path out of the hills of Appalachia. </p><p>Terrific characterizations,surprising revelations, gut-wrenching past betrayals, and an unforgettable castof characters born of the dusty, worn-out landscape of southeastern Ohio make <em>The Essay</em> a powerful, evocative, andincredibly moving novel. </p>