Carrying Albert home
Subtitle: the somewhat true story of a man, his wife, and her alligator
By: Homer Hickam
Contributors: Hickam, Homer H., 1943-
Edition: First edition.
Publisher: William Morrow
Published: 2015
Language: eng
Number of pages: 398
ISBN-13: 9780062325891
Copyright date: 2015
Subjects: Alligators as pets; Man-woman relationships; Automobile travel; Husband and wife; Coal miners; Fiction
Description: Elsie Lavender and Homer Hickam (the father of the author) were high school classmates in the West Virginia coalfields, graduating just as the Great Depression began. When Homer asked for her hand, Elsie instead headed to Orlando where she sparked with a dancing actor named Buddy Ebsen (yes, that Buddy Ebsen). But when Buddy headed for New York, Elsie's dreams of a life with him were crushed and eventually she found herself back in the coalfields, married to Homer. Unfulfilled as a miner's wife, Elsie was reminded of her carefree days with Buddy every day because of his unusual wedding gift: an alligator named Albert she raised in the only bathroom in the house. When Albert scared Homer by grabbing his pants, he gave Elsie an ultimatum: "Me or that alligator!" After giving it some thought, Elsie concluded there was only one thing to do: Carry Albert home.
Notes: "This book is a work of fiction"--verso.

"The long-awaited prequel to the bestselling memoir Rocket Boys"-- dust jacket.