An Hour Before Daylight.

Book Review.
Carter, Jimmy. An Hour Before Daylight. Memories of a rural boyhood. Simon & Schuster Paperbacks. 2001.
Comment. Henry.
Biographies should be read for fun, not as an assignment. I certainly had fun with this one. I have an older brother that is about the same age as this president. We grew up on a farm. It was the great depression. That is where the comparison ends. However, that similar background gave this read some relevance for me. When, as a young adult, I developed an appreciation for history and historical leaders it was the result of focusing on the humanness (humanity) of these people. President Carter has shared some very interesting information about his growing up years with his family.

Farming was very different in Georgia than in western Canada. Life on the Carter farm was really a community. Farm employees, black people, lived on the farm acreage. The Carter ‘community’ lived and functioned very much as an extended family.
Sharecropping was the system of farming. Everyone was impacted by the hardships of the Depression. The primary crops were cotton and peanuts. Farming was very labour intensive for man and beast. Government management (interference) of crop acreages was a difficult experience for farmers.
Life between whites and blacks on the farm was quite integrated. Jimmy’s best friend was a black boy. It could not be called racial integration but it was not extreme racial discrimination. There was good quality of life (under the circumstances). Jimmy’s childhood was a happy one where hard work was a given and comforts of life were limited.
Economic concerns were always a primary focus. Those who lacked skills in farming and commerce suffered hardships.
There were interesting personalities in the ‘Carter clan’. Family relationships were strong. They shared common values of a strong work ethic and respect for strongly held opinions.
The focus of this biography is early childhood and rural life styles. Very little is said about the president’s political career. It is all about family.