Tell It True

A Novel

By: John Pruitt

Narrated by: John Pruitt

An African American serviceman is gunned down on a rural Georgia road in July 1964. This shocking murder ensnares a wide range of characters including the journalists who cover it, the lawmen who must solve it, the civil rights leaders who capitalize upon it, the politicians who exploit it, and the Atlanta magnate who fears its impact on the New South image he desperately wants to protect. TV news cameraman Gil Matthews and AP reporter Mindy Williams team up to follow the twists and turns of the murder investigation as rural, state, and federal lawmen clash, a civil rights leader fends off a black power challenger, and voters take sides in a governor's race pitting virulent racist Roscoe Pike against moderate underdog Harrison Parker. Focusing on the challenges faced by journalists as they covered a societal revolution and brought the dramatic and sometimes violent scenes to TV screens around the world, Tell It True takes us to a time when the future of the South hung in the balance.

©2022 John L Pruitt III (P)2023 John L Pruitt III

Local history made visible in a fantastic novel.

I grew up in the time period of John’s novel. It made me reflect on all that was occurring during that period. Albeit fiction I found myself trying to match his characters with the ones from my youth. Listening to him made the experience of the book a great opportunity to remember what it was like growing up in the south.

Suspenseful, Tense

The 1964 murder of an African American serviceman in a rural area of Georgia sends the region into chaos. Politicians, journalists, civil rights & religious leaders, and the public are key characters in this suspense-filled murder mystery that will affect the region and the world.

The author, John Pruitt, provides a detailed account of the emotions, beliefs, practices, and actions surrounding civil rights and political events during 1964. Based on a true event, Pruitt weaves a fictionalized dialogue and characters that bring these details to the forefront of the narrative. Pruitt keeps the story moving forward smoothly with details that paint a vivid picture of the events, characters, and climate of the time. In addition, while it would be all too easy to have the sheriff as a one-dimensional character, instead Pruitt details the sheriff's growth and acceptance of change. The characters were well-developed and provided powerful insight into the actions and times of this period.

John Pruitt also served as the narrator. As the narrator, Pruitt provided the emotional passion of each character and situation while also maintaining an even balance. He spoke concisely and utilizing deliberate pauses and cadence.

This was an interesting audiobook that brought events, emotions, and actions from the 1960s to the 2020s vividly and honestly.

There were no issues with the quality or production of this audiobook.

Multiple Perspectives

Pruitt's characters give the listener insights into the multiple influencers in the civil rights fight after the passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964. He also shares the difficulty of being a white southerner who wants progress in racial justice but faltes in aggressively pursuing that because of heritage and the larger white community. The story is riveting. The character types recognizable. The narration easy to listen to. The narration, while it has the strength of a newscaster, has the depth of a good storyteller.

Why Atlanta did not become Birmingham!

Anyone interested in the story of how Atlanta evolved into the world class city that it has become will find "Tell It True" as a critical starting point in history.
How Atlanta and Georgia responded to the Civil Rights movement was critical to becoming the business and cultural center of the South.
"Tell It True" is fiction but with historical undertones that place the reader/listener in Atlanta and Georgia in the critical time of 1964. It gives an insight that is refreshing.
The narration is so well preformed, that it was hard to stop listening even when an important meeting interrupted my schedule.
Not surprising, since John Pruitt the author and narrator is a pro with the spoken word.
Five Stars all round.