Reckless Lives: A Tale of the Old South

When nine year old only child Lizzie Henderson brings home Michael, an African straight off the boat from the Charleston slave market to be her constant companion, she sets herself and the proud son of an African chief up for a world of difficulties. As her teen years approach, Lizzie looks forward to her debutant ball, and encourages the attentions of Derrick LePoint, the charming and learned son of a wealthy slaveowner, and Josiah Walsh, a hard working, illiterate sharecropper with seven siblings. From the fields, Scarlett, a spunky and ambitious field hand makes her move to draw Michael to her, and away from her arch rival, Lizzie. When a humiliating event causes Michael to flee life in the Big House, Scarlett is here to make him feel right at home, despite the heavy workload, and stern, domineering overseer. As the years pass, Michael and Lizzie plot his escape from the plantation. But can Lizzie keep Michael's secret, even from her best friends? And who will join Michael in his journey to freedom---Lizzie or Scarlett?

Tags: Old South, 1800's, Race, Field Hand, Houseslave, South Carolina, Mammy, Derrick, Lizzie, Michael, Africa, plantation, pre-Civil War Era, patroller, sharecropper, Scarlett, mixed race, mullatto, race relations in the Old South, debutant, rivalry, scarcity of females, Charleston, Horry County, slavery, cotton, tobacco, picker, envy, jealousy, demons, prayer, freedom, escape, slave narrative, ancestors, Onomoraiah, West Coast of Africa, middle passage, gentleman, lady, female:male ratio, marriage, courtship, kissing, sexuality, stable, horses, Silver, blood, whipping, recuperation, accident, childhood, swimming, freedom, orphan, motherless child, overseer, blind, torture, virgin, tutor, classics, Shelly, Socrates, legacy, inheritance, debt, ball, dancing, reputation, honor, loyalty, betrayal, secret, honest, pub, drunk, wildflowers, stream, animal rights,chickens, barn, steilization