Year: 2017

Download the Prologue and Chapter One of Brambleman to read at your leisure, Enjoy! BRAMBLEMAN A Novel by Jonathan Grant   PLOT DESCRIPTION: Down-and- out Atlanta writer Charlie Sherman has no idea what madness awaits him when a mysterious stranger convinces him to finish a dead man’s book about a horrific crime that’s gone unpunished for decades. What Charlie inherits is an unwieldy manuscript about the mob-driven expulsion of more than 1,000 blacks from Forsyth County, Georgia in 1912. During the course of his work, Charlie uncovers a terrible secret involving a Forsyth County land grab. Due to its proximity to Atlanta, the stolen farm is now worth $20 million—and a sale is pending. When he finds the land’s rightful owner, Charlie becomes convinced he’s…

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(Original post published  Jan 24, 2014) Wanted: I’m looking for firsthand accounts from people who marched with Hosea Williams in Forsyth County in 1987. You can email me at info@thornbriarpress.com. I’d love to hear your story. And if you’ve written an account, I’d be happy to reprint it here. Updated Jan. 19, 2018: Molly Woo wrote to me: “Worked as a reporter for the Forsyth County News at the time of the marches – remembered the scenes a few years ago, in this post Last year, I posted an account of Hosea Williams’  two Forsyth County marches.  This year, I wanted to focus on first-person accounts of participants. Below are the memories of three marchers. I interviewed Joe Beasley of Atlanta and Jo Marsh of…

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  Georgia Public Service Commission Candidate John Noel (D-Atlanta) has released the following statement about the outrage-in-progress by hyper pro-utility, anti-consumer PSC chairman Stan Wise. Definitely worth a read, and John is definitely worth supporting. You can follow his campaign on Facebook and  Twitter @NoelforPSC Download a copy of PSC Chairman should resign pdf  BTW,  John has an awesome solar-powered home that was featured in a knockout Like Tesla video.  Georgia PSC Chairman Should Do Us All a Favor and Resign Immediately (Atlanta) Recent news reports reveal that Georgia Public Service Commission Chairman Stan Wise plans to give Georgia Power the green light to complete Plant Vogtle, then resign to take a job in the utility industry. Democratic PSC Candidate John Noel is calling…

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Note: I originally wrote this piece as a guest post for CummingLocal.com.   In my novel, Charlie Sherman learns that there are things people need to know  about Forsyth County, Georgia, and he’s the one to tell them, despite facing overwhelming  obstacles. This means there’s a book within the book—make that two.  First, there’s Forsyth County’s historic racial terrorism and ethnic  cleansing. While this episode is well-known to some people, Atlanta is home to  many relative newcomers. Most of the white people I’ve talked to didn’t know  what happened in 1912.  Others think Forsyth’s racial troubles began when Hosea Williams marched in  1987.  African-Americans I’ve talked to have a different understanding,  of course, along with a deeply-rooted aversion to the place. Secondly,…

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