A New England Romance

Don’t let the title of this book fool you. This collection of short stories by Randall Ivey is Southern through and through. Set in the upcountry of South Carolina in the fictitious County of Compton, Ivey’s stories introduce us to a cast of memorable characters. From the bookish and idealistic Jane Poage who falls for a handsome New England thespian, to the eleven-year-old minister and faith-healer Reverend Benny Troy Hoyt, to the peculiar, yet misunderstood Yankee high school chorus teacher, Mrs. Stratton, Ivey’s stories are certain to shock, entertain, and perhaps even move one to tears. If you have ever “visited” William Faulkner’s Yoknapatawpha County, or “passed through” James Kibler’s Clay Bank County, you will most certainly want to add Ivey’s Compton County to your literary travel itinerary.