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A Dot on the
Map
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An ENE Review of the novel
A Dot on the Map by David O. Dyer, Sr.
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| What is it about a long car trip that causes an overactive bladder?
Okay, maybe that was a cheap ploy to get your attention -- but come on,
it's an observable phenomenon, isn't it? You get in the car, start the drive
toward your faraway destination, when all of a sudden the urge overwhelms
and one must heed the call of nature. If this has never happened to you,
you probably have never been far from home. |
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| A moment just like this occurs in the opening pages of A Dot on the
Map by David O. Dyer, Sr., the first in a series of novels situated in the
sleepy town of Dot, North Carolina. In fact, Dot isn't just sleepy, it's
dying. But I get ahead of myself. Our hero, one Tim Dollar, stops to relieve
himself at last, only to discover a naked woman who has been badly beaten
and tied to a tree. He gives in to another urge, a particularly male one
this time -- the urge to rescue a damsel in distress. Sandra, the damsel
in question, definitely appreciates what he's done, but where to next? Both
Tim and Sandra find themselves at turning points in their lives, and are
in search of direction. Fortunately, Tim has just received a large inheritance
from a rich uncle, and this leads them to Dot (his uncle owned much of the
town, mind you). Here they find their direction and much more. |
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| Those who read A Dot on the Map will delight in the finely
drawn, complex characters and the equally complex relationships between
them. Tim and Sandra are especially well done, and go from drifting outsiders
to town saviors, meeting their fair measure of challenges along the way.
In fact, the entire population of Dot seems determined to fascinate, and
I was reminded at many points of the new TV series "Ed", another "outsider
arrives to make good" story. Of course, there are brief moments of graphic
sex, and they seem entirely believable, given the characters and their varied
backgrounds. No long, sweating, panting sex scenes, but you'll be so busy
wondering what's up with Tim and Sandra and Bobby and Mack that you won't
want for more. |
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| This book is part of a series of eight novels, all revolving around
Dot and its populace, and since this one is first in the series, it's obviously
the "set up" for all the rest. My only quibble is that I could have done
with a little more physical description of Dot itself, since it figures
so prominently in the story, almost like a character in itself. But that's
a small objection, and I wouldn't be surprised if it is remedied in the
subsequent novels. |
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| No, you may not have a rich uncle, ready to kick the bucket and leave
a town to you, but there is Dot, North Carolina, a place where readers can
easily lose themselves. No map necessary to find your way there -- just
a copy of A Dot on the Map! |
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A
Dot on the Map by David O. Dyer, Sr.
If
it were not for the full bladder that forced him to stop on the
side of Highway 13 on his way to Dot, North Carolina, Tim would
never have found Sandy, naked and tied to a tree just out of view
from the road. The citizens of Dot, a dying crossroads community
near Charlotte, assume the couple is married since their last
names are the same, and Tim discovers he has inherited a vast
fortune from his "Uncle Pete Harlow." Tim finds he must deal with
his uncle's mixed reputation in the community as both a benefactor
and sexual degenerate. Sandy's attempts at respectability are
impeded by ghosts of her past which lead to an attempted rape,
a narrow escape from arrest when members of the Van Fans gang,
to which she formerly belonged, are arrested by Sheriff Matt Dilson,
and blackmail attempts by both John Baxter, the pastor of the
Dot Baptist Church, and Deputy Cathy Long.
Note
Bene: When ordering REB e-books, select 'ENE' from the resellers'
drop down menu.
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All Text, Codes, Graphics © 2001 ENE. All
Rights Reserved.
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