The Perilous Road

Plot overview

Chris Brabson is a boy whose family lives in the mountains of Eastern Tennessee during the Civil War. His family encounters hard times when cavalry soldiers of the Union Army come and take most of his family's food and their one and only plow horse leaving them little supplies to sustain the winter. Chris vowes to get even with the Yanks and is determined to fight for Confederate Army. Chris' brother, Jethro, has just recently joined the Union Army forcing Chris to examine his beliefs of war, courage, and tolerance. Jethro's enlistment causes the Brabson family to be the victims of prejudice from their neighbors who are sympathizers of the Confederate Army. The neighbors become intolerant of their beliefs and burn down their shed and threaten to do the same with their house.

Though Jethro is a Union soldier, Chris hates the Union troops. When Chris finds out that there is a wagon train in the area he alerts a friend of his, Silas Agee, who claims to be a Confederate spy. It is only after he tells Silas about the wagon train that he finds out that his brother's job in the Army will be as a wagon driver. Chris then takes it upon himself to go tell his brother of the fact that the Confederates have been alerted about the wagon train in order to try to save Jethro's life. When he gets to the wagon train in search of Jethro, he is kindly greeted by Union troops who offer him food and conversation. He begins to change his perspective of the Yankees learning that they are very different from him and are not the hateful thieves he once viewed them as.

Geographical setting

It was 1863, and Chris Brabson lived in a dogtrot cabin on Walden’s Ridge in the rural mountains of Tennessee, where streams ran clear and sweet down the mountain. The blue sky stretched out forever overhead, and trees of all varieties grew on the mountains, including sourwoods, sweet gums, black gums, hickories and oaks. Sequatchie Valley lay far below the mountains, and there was a major road cut deep in the valley called Anderson Road.

Political setting

The book is set in 1863 during the American Civil War. Chris lives in southeastern Tennessee, a Confederate state, and is therefore in the South. The Yankees are invading his homeland and Chris has an extreme feeling of hate towards them. The Federals are also stealing his family's provisions and that led to Chris hating them even more. Despite Chris’ strong feelings of opposition toward one side, the war was a terrible occurrence for all. The war tore apart communities and families. Jethro Brabson, Chris’ older brother, had gone to fight as a Federal, and Chris disagreed with his brother’s decision. He wanted Jethro to go onto the battlefield and fight for the Confederates. The Brabson’s shed was burned by their neighbors because the neighbors thought that the Brabsons were Yankees.

Emotional setting

The emotional setting is very important because it helps the reader understand the Civil War and the character in more depth. Uneasiness and tension is felt in the middle of the novel when Chris trips over a dead man's leg on the battlefield. Excitement is felt in the middle of the novel when Chris lets the Federal mules loose. Relief is felt near the end of the novel when Chris discovers that although it was forever changed by the war, Walden’s Ridge was still the finest place on Earth.

Awards and nominations

In 1959, The Perilous Road was awarded the Newbery Honor.