Winner of the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award "Reginald Gibbons's first novel takes place in east Texas in 1910 during the time of white rule--not by law but by lynch mob. Amid the suffocating racism and fear, half-Choctaw, half-white Reuben Sweetbitter and Martha Clarke, a white woman, fall in love. . . . Reuben and Martha's love is strong, but, dishearteningly, racism is stronger. Timely in the subject of interracial love, this authentic, richly -detailed novel plumbs sacrifice, fear, and the loss of one's identity, bringing the -anguish of the two young lovers to life. Highly recommended."--Library Journal "Far more than a spellbinding love story . . . a novel wide and deep in its understanding. . . . An unforgettable story, a remarkable piece of work."--Dallas Morning News "I love this novel: it sings, it soars. Simultaneously deft and deep, it brings a lost world back to brilliant light."--Andrea Barrett "Surprising in every way. . . . The novel's ending is as strong as its beginning--terrifying and beautiful, a true tour de force."--Chicago Tribune