ONE BEFORE BEDTIME

by Richard Linkroum ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 11, 1968

It may be hard to swallow--yet another pill which in this case turns Jeff Baxter, a simple soul just back from Vietnam, just as dark as Black Alice (p. 923). But there are fewer Pop-eyed effects in this book which is smalltown and folksy in spots, and where druggist Cortland Pedigrew dabbles in his collar and comes up with this remedy for Jeff's sene which instead makes him black all over. Jeff is promptly hidden from view, a private shame and a public threat. Except to Peggy, his flancee, a freedom fighter who wants to use him in the racial struggle, while, at home, her brother who tells part of this story is literally blackmailed by a young waitress. . . . None of this is either too in or too far out and, with its humor and perhaps even its message, it is more apt to reach the general reader than Black Alice. And while never very funny, there are a few restorative effects--like the old Dr. Pepper you used to buy at that friendly drugstore.

Pub Date: Nov. 11, 1968

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Lippincott

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1968

Categories: FICTION