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The Dark-Thirty
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The Dark-Thirty (1992) (edit title/settings)

Southern Tales of the Supernatural

by Patricia C. McKissack (Author) (edit contributors)

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Description edit see section history

Illus. in black-and-white. With an extraordinary gift for suspense, McKissack brings us ten original spine-tingling tales inspired by African-American history and the mystery of that eerie half-hour before nightfall--the dark thirty. "The atmosphere of each selection is skillfully developed... read more

Summary edit see section history

"The Legend of Pin Oak" tells of two brothers, one white and one mulatto. Though Henri, the mulatto son, was given the plantation, his brother Harper takes over. Illegally sold into slavery, Henri and his wife and baby escape and are turned into birds.

"We Organized" tells of a group of... read more (warning: may contain spoilers)

"The Legend of Pin Oak" tells of two brothers, one white and one mulatto. Though Henri, the mulatto son, was given the plantation, his brother Harper takes over. Illegally sold into slavery, Henri and his wife and baby escape and are turned into birds.

"We Organized" tells of a group of slaves who use a voodoo ritual to make their cruel master free them.

"Justice". After a rich man is murdered, the KKK kills a black man and say he had done the crime. The man then haunts the true murderer.

"The 11:59" A retired porter named Lester is faced with a legendary ghost train that will take him from this life.

"The Sight" A man named Esau is born with a second sight that goes away and reappears later on when he envisions a fire disaster affecting his family.

"The Woman in the Snow" A ghost story of a woman who dies when a man will not let her ride the bus. She haunts it until another bus driver allows her ghost on.

"The Conjure Brother" A little girl goes to a conjure woman for a spell to get a brother and is not happy with the results when she gets a older brother instead.

"Boo Mama" A widow's son disappears only to reappear months later, changed after his experience with a Sasquatch-like people who invite the boy and his mother to join them.

"The Gingi" A woman buys a figurine at a shop and unwittingly brings an evil spirit into her home. The proprieter also gives her a talisman to keep it at bay. After she destroys both, the spirits attack each other while she and her family leave.

"The Chicken Coop Monster" A little girl must face the creature inside the chicken coop.

Characters/People edit see section history

  • Harper McAvoy: A land owner who sells his slave half-brother.
  • Henri: A mulatto man sold into slavery by his brother
  • Charlemae: Henri's wife, a beautiful African woman.
  • Ajax: A driver who participates in a voodoo ritual against Massa.
  • Massa: Ajax's cruel owner.
  • Corbella: A Congo woman Massa promises to free and does not.
  • Pappy Sims: Grew too old to pick cotton.
  • Riley Holt: The richest and most powerful man in Tallahatchie County who was murdered.
  • Burton Baker: Police chief
  • Hoop Granger: Mechanic and KKK member.
  • Alvin Tinsley: A black veterinarian accused of murdering Riley Holt.
  • Lester Simmons: A retired Pullman car porter.
  • A. Philip Randolph: President of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters.
  • Daddy Joe: A larger-than-life hero to the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters.
  • Tip: A sleeping car porter who boarded the 11:59 and comes to pick up Lester.
  • Amanda Mayes: Esau's mother who believes in The Sight.
  • Esau Mayes: A boy born with a second sight.
  • Tall Mayes: Esau's abusive father and Amanda's husband. He is nasty, but charming.
  • Charity Rose: Esau's wife
  • Grady Bishop: A bus driver who refuses to give a black woman and her child a ride home.
  • Ray Hammond: A black bus driver.
  • Eula May Daniels: The ghost of a woman trying to ride the bus.
  • Josie Hudson: A little girl longing for a sibling.
  • Madam Zinnia: A "conjure woman"
  • Adam: Josie's "conjure brother".
  • Leddy: An activist determined for a peaceful world. Her baby son disappears in the woods.
  • Joe Morrison: Leddy's husband, a Marine who is killed in Vietnam.
  • Germaine: Leddy's boss and friend.
  • Nealy: Leddy and Joe's baby son.
  • Sylvia: Germaine's wife and a friend to Leddy.
  • Boo: Nealy's favorite teddy bear.
  • Sheriff Martin: Investigates the case of missing Nealy.
  • Dr. Jamison: Doctor who studies Nealy and says his genetics have been altered.
  • Noss "Boo Mama": A Sasquatch creature who takes in Nealy and Leddy.
  • Laura Bates: A modern 90s woman who purchases a strange talisman
  • Mrs. Aswadi: Owner of the Mother Africa shop.
  • Lizzie Bates: Laura's 4-year-old daughter.
  • Thomas Lester Bates: Laura's 8-year-old son.
  • August: The family cat.
  • Mr. Feathers: A doll talisman, a Gingi, who protects Laura's family.
  • Dabobo: An evil figurine Laura buys.
  • Jack Bates: A logical man, Laura's husband.
  • Ma Franky: Missy's grandmother
  • Missy: A little girl sent to live with her grandparents when her parents divorce. She is afraid of a monster in the chicken coop.
  • Daddy James: Missy's grandfather
  • Tissy: Missy's pet chick.
Show all 46 characters
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Quotes edit see section history

Setting & Locations edit see section history

Southern United States

Organizations edit see section history

First Sentence edit see section history

In 1868 a Kentucky artist, Thomas Satterwhite Noble, painted "The Price of Blood", which shows the sale of a mulatto slave by his father-master, to illustrate the cruelty of slavery.

Table of Contents edit see section history

Author's Note
The Legend of Pin Oak
We Organized
Justice
The 11:59
The Sight
The Woman in the Snow
The Conjure Brother
Boo Mama
The Gingi
The Chicken-Coop Monster

Themes & Symbolism edit see section history

  • Racism and Slavery: Being stories of the South, these topics come up and fuel some supernatural events.

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

  1. Patricia C. McKissack (Author)

Other Contributors:

  1. Brian Pinkney (Illustrator)

First Edition edit see section history

Original Language: English
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
Country: USA
Publication Date: 1992
ISBN: 0679818634
Page Count: 122

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