Hal Bennett – Lord of Dark Places – Review

 

This was a complex novel to read. The reasons vary, though, on the surface, the book is plagued with sexual imagery and gratuitous sexual exploits. However, in the narrative, the criminal actions can be unspeakable in any civilized society. To understand Bennett's commentary through the main protagonist is to delve into American culture, including religion, war, racism, politics, and what it meant to be black American during the '50s and '60s. The novel is also exceptionally well written, penned by a master of prose.

Having some knowledge of contemporary American literature, it was unfortunate not to have even heard of Hal Bennett, let alone read any of his work. Nevertheless, Lord of Dark Places is a good start.

Bennett was born in 1930 in the state of Virginia. He wrote under many pseudonyms, including Harriet Janeway and John D. Revere. One critic described "the Lord of Dark Places as a satirical and all but scatological attack on the phallic myth. Indeed the Freudian allusions are numerous and graphic in this novel; at times too much to bear.

We follow the life and mind of Joe Market. Born in the deep south, he witnesses his mother's death and the despicable actions of his father. Joe's father Titus is a conman turned preacher, creating a new religion exclusively for black men. Under the guise of this religion is a traveling sex show, Titus pimping young Joe out to the Hallelujah crowds, both male and female. The young Joe is led to believe he is a type of new god, his massive member and pristine naked body, a symbol of the new savior of the black American.

Religion and sex combine to make the perfect con. Joe finally escapes this life through a chain of circumstances, ending up North, selling his body to make a living. This is all he knows until almost being arrested for solicitation by an Italian cop. The cop gives Joe an alternative of either jailing or going back to school. Joe reluctantly chooses the latter.

Joe volunteers to go to Vietnam. It's here he inadvertently kills a man, and wittiness a black pilot castrated and killed from a bomb. He eventually is wounded and returns home. Joe's commentary on war, country and African Americans' place in this milieu is spot on and relevant today.

For Joe Market, sex drives everything: identity, manhood, love, murder, death, pleasure, pain, violence, and ultimately spiritual redemption.

This view combines and peaks at the novel's profound climax and ending.

The novel is original. It's a carnival of satire, myth, detective thriller, and profound social commentary.

A difficult though thought-provoking experience.