Panhandlers - by Nic Schuck (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

In Panhandlers, Nic Schuck tells a raw and unflinching story of Hank Ackerman, a boy born into poverty in the forgotten lumber town of Sullivan, Florida. As Hank struggles to break free from a legacy of hardship and addiction, he learns that escape isn't just about leaving-it's about finding something worth running toward. Hank's journey unfolds alongside the lives of Sullivan's other denizens-mostly dreamers, drifters, and the down-and-out-each carrying their own burdens and desires.

Set against the backdrop of the sweltering Gulf Coast and spanning decades of hope, heartbreak, and hard luck, Panhandlers explores the pull of family and the price of dreams. With grit, grace, and deep emotional honesty, Schuck delivers a powerful coming-of-age tale interwoven among a chorus of lives bound by place, longing, and survival.

Review Quotes

"Things have changed little in the profound South since the days of Harry Crews and Larry Brown. If you like the gritty South noir that began with Sanctuary, you will find Panhandlers--from the piney-woods northwest Florida region--very satisfying. Nic Schuck knows his territory and he knows the inhabitants and their mores--cock fighting, dog fighting, beer drinking, shooting, and the never-ending, gut-wrenching age-old art of mere survival--first-hand. If you want the real story, this is it." - Allen Josephs is the author, most recently, of On Cormac McCarthy: Essays on Mexico, Crime, Hemingway and God

"Nic Schuck captures the nuances of the seedier side of the Florida Panhandle like few have in this collection of interwoven short stories. The characters bear eerie resemblances to the people we have investigated and covered over the years. Well done." - Rick Outzen, publisher of Pensacola's Independent News and author of City of Grudges

"As an instructor of literature and the co-owner of an indie bookstore, I have the opportunity to read a number of young authors. By far, Nic Schuck is one of the most talented new writers I've come across in years. With echoes of Hemingway and McCarthy-- as well as newer Southern writers such as Tom Franklin--Nic Schuck adds a unique contribution to both modern Southern literature and the emerging Florida canon, with the truly authentic voice of the Gulf South."

- C. Scott Satterwhite, University of West Florida and co-owner of Open Books