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‘Redneck Boy in the Promised Land’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The first clue that you’re in for fun with Ben Jones’s memoir is the chapter titles. “That Was Not a Chip on My Shoulder, That was a Crosstie.” “An Old Alky Versus Ken and Barbie.” “Cooter Tries to Neuter the Newtster.”
A guy who can come up with chapter headers like that ought to be able to write a fine memoir indeed. “Redneck Boy in the Promised Land” isn’t much on the actual writing. It’s grammatical. And spell-checked. But then it’s unlikely that Jones’s fans are going to be plunking down $24 for his way with a metaphor.
OK, there is one moment when he shows some chops. That’s when he describes actress Catherine Bach: “She had the best legs in the history of legs.” Now that’s writing.
For those who are too young or too Northern to know, Jones has two major claims to fame. He played Cooter on “The Dukes of Hazzard,” a TV show in the early ‘80s about Catherine Bach’s legs and good ol’boys driving fast through the woods. And he served two terms as a Congressman from Georgia’s Fourth District, running in memorably miasmic contests against Newt Gingrich and Pat Swindall. “Redneck Boy” fills in all the other stuff, and there’s a lot of it.
Jones will read from and sign “Redneck Boy in the Promised Land” at 7 p.m. on June 26 at Manuel’s Tavern, 602 N. Highland Ave., Atlanta. A Cappella Books is the bookseller for the event. It should be a hoot.
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