Ancient Highway, by Bret Lott

“The story I want to tell here is about a young man and what could have been a family,” says Brad Holmes, one of three hardened protagonists whose DNA and threaded stories comprise Bret Lott’s novel, Ancient Highway.

Brad is a Merchant Marine on the USS Denver, who is witnessing the last days of the Vietnam War when a nearby family grabs his attention. They have been rescued from the fighting and are now sitting on deck, playing games and making the best of a chaotic situation.

Each of them, despite the war and their injuries, manages to appreciate their survival, that they are near each other and will probably live to see another day.  As desperate helicopters hover above, looking for space to land on the ship, Brad stares transfixed at the family’s perseverance and bond. It is a touching and decisive moment, one that shapes Brad’s personality and ultimately develops into a collective metaphor for this novel.

Before Brad, though, there was Earl, his erratic, idealistic grandfather. He dreamed of making a name for himself in the movies, or “flickers,” as they are called here. Earle created the circuitous wake of hope and bitterness his family is forced to endure. He is the king of Ancient Highway, beginning with his boyhood in Texas, his fascination with film and movie stars, and continuing through his train-hopping days and time spent sweeping floors in a Hollywood movie studio.

Earl is the colorful delinquent you can’t help but root for, despite his narcissism, which sacrifices everything that stands in the way of his dreams. But this narcissism—some might call it blind optimism or self-confidence—supplies the novel with its arc of hope, loss, and redemption.

Earl is not alone in bearing loss. So too does Joan, Earl’s repressed daughter. Her chief desire is to return to Texas, where Earl could find steady work and Saralee, as his wife and Joan’s mother, will no longer have to endure the shards of poverty and disappointment that continually stab her fragile disposition.

But Earl’s aspirations will not be denied, and so Joan spends her days in a cramped apartment, searching for clues about her mother’s time spent singing in a big band, and allowing her father to drag her into a ridiculous song and dance scheme. As time passes, Joan drifts into isolation, eventually swearing off her parents for their lack of affection and selfish behavior.

Saralee, on the other hand, is a devoted wife, ambitious singer, and sensitive mother. But she remains on the sideline of the story, despite her formidable presence. Her personal circumstances crystallize her family’s similarities and differences: dreams and squandered chances bleeding into fresh opportunities.

Author Bret Lott, a professor at the College of Charleston, maneuvers across three generations, running a ribbon through the arms of despondent family members, using rhythmic prose to deliver an assiduous tale.

But for all its scope and ambition, Ancient Highway feels rather small. Condensing three generations’ worth of experiences into succinct chapters allows for particular focus on language and feelings, but not much on drama, character development and ideology. The novel’s intention is to refelct the legendary family story it tells, with virtuosity and flaws, while friends and family are gathered around the supper table.

Through this telling the reader comes to know these people, the Holmes, and wince and smile at their familiarity. After all, they are part of a story we already know. We’ve heard it before because it is timeless and an integral part of family life. With Ancient Highway, Lott has taken a well-worn American fable and repackaged it as contemporary fiction.

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Portions of this review previously appeared in the Charleston City Paper.