Review of the book The House of the Rising Sun by James Lee Burke

The House of the Rising Sun is the second novel by James Lee Burke in his Holland Family Series. The first being, Wayfaring Stranger, that tells the story of Weldon Avery Holland. One of the significant characters in that novel is Avery’s grandfather, Hackberry Holland, a crusty individual who struggles with a number of personal issues, one of which is relating to other people, especially those of his own family. The House of the Rising Sun is a precursor to Wayfaring Stranger. Though second in the series it covers events in the life of Hackberry Holland and the demons that he has had to contend with that makes him the grandfather that he is to Avery. In much the same vein as Wayfaring Stranger that has the recurring reference to one of the notorious duos of the 1930s, Bonnie and Clyde, The House of the Rising Sun has Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and their Hole in the Wall Gang functioning in much the same way. They pop up periodically as minor antagonists to Hackberrry, especially the Sundance Kid. But the main thrust of the story is Hackberry’s search for his son, Ishmael, whom he presumably abandoned when his son was a little boy along with Ishmael’s mother, Ruby Dansen. If you see a parallel to the biblical story of Abraham, Hagar, and their son, Ishmael, I don’t think you would be mistaken. The difference being that Burke’s “Abraham” regrets the lost years with them both and is determined to make amends as best he can. Perhaps this is Burke’s subtle way of righting the wrong of the biblical narrative in which Hagar and Ishmael are sent away by Abraham’s wife, Sarah, never to be heard from again. The House of the Rising Sun moves back and forth through time setting the scene for what finally transpires in the bulk of the book, the quest for two Holy Grails. For Hackberry that would be his son and little bud’s mother. For Arnold Beckman, an international arms dealer, who is the main antagonist of the book, it is the cup that presumably Jesus used at the Last Supper. Both men are willing to do anything to achieve their ends. James Lee Burke is a great storyteller, even of one that presumptuously assumes the existence of a religious artifact that has long been lost, otherwise it would be in a Vatican vault being visited by millions of pilgrims each year, and that Paul Newman and Robert Redford actually did survive the last scene in the film “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” which hardly seems likely facing the withering fire they did. His character development is genuine. For the most part they are a mixed bag. Burke actually notes that Hackberry has a bad seed that impacts much of his actions, but also has a penchant for confronting evil wherever he encounters it. Such is the universal trait of humanity, prone to evil but also surprisingly virtuous. In a way Burke’s quote of Matthew 23:31 from the New Testament sums up the book well: “Truly I say to you the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you.” For the “holier than thou” folk that may be terribly disconcerting. But for the mixed bag folk, who could care less who stands in line ahead of them, that is incredibly reassuring. We get into the kingdom of God! We realize our “holy grail”! Who cares whether we are first or last? At least we’re in! Burke has his epilogue. Hopefully, this will be ours. We’re in! Reviewed by Richard Dick, Library Assistant, O’Kelly Memorial Library