Oleander City: A Novel Based on a True Story
Six-year-old orphan Hester (last name unknown) survives the 1900 Galveston Hurricane, which leveled the Texas port city and killed over ten thousand. Real-life heavyweight boxers Joe Choynski, who is Jewish, and Black Jack Johnson soon put on a local fight to raise money for the recovery. Red Cross founder Clara Barton and helpers arrive to assist as they can. At night, KKK marauders intimidate everyone and slaughter defenseless Black people. Alternating points of view from Hester, Red Cross nurse Diana, and Choynski take readers through the storm and the three weeks after.
Bondurant goes deep into the lives and thoughts of the nurses, the boxers and their handlers, and local leaders who change into hooded night marauders. His research is evident and includes actual news reports and letters. The heat, humidity, insects, dead bodies, and flood damage are all intense (though overdone in parts). Little Hester, the only one remaining alive out of 94 orphans and their caregiver nuns, comes across as an angelic allegory. She is insightful and wise beyond her years. She is kind and helpful, and her little body is stronger and runs faster than any six-year-old.
The true facts (the storm, boxing matches, the city’s recovery, the role of the fledgling Red Cross) provide a compelling slice of American history. Bondurant’s literary prose and dialogue with no tags work. However, his fictional subplots feel invented with over-the-top twists and resolutions. The storm carnage alone provides enough drama. This novel will appeal to readers wanting to learn about the greatest Jewish boxer of all time (Choynski), young Jack Johnson, the selfless Red Cross of an earlier time, and the carnage wrought by Galveston’s hurricane.
