Poor White

“A story that pays careful attention to what it meant (and means) to live in the Midwest, open to both its charms and its challenges.” —Sarah Laskow, The Millions
 
Hugh McVey moves from Missouri to the agrarian town of Bidwell, Ohio. He invents a mechanical cabbage planter to ease the burden of famers, but an investor in town exploits his product, which fails to succeed. His next invention, a corn cutter, makes him a millionaire and transforms Bidwell into a center of manufacturing. McVey, perennially lonely and ruminative, meets Clara Butterworth, who attends college at nearby Ohio State and is perennially harassed by her potential matches. Published in 1920, one year after his classic short story collection, Winesburg, Ohio, Poor White has a modernist style, a realist attention to everyday life, and an eerily contemporary resonance.
 
“Belt Revivals wisely brings Anderson back onto the radar during this political moment” —New York Times
 
“For the past five years, a small press called Belt Publishing has been bringing out intriguing nonfiction books about the Midwest; now they've started a new series called “Belt Revivals,” to publish classic Midwestern fiction as well as nonfiction.” —Maureen Corrigan, NPR