The rich history of river life in Kentucky permeates Janice Holt Giles's
novel Run Me a River. Set in 1861, at the beginning of Kentucky's
reluctant entry into the Civil War, the novel tells the story of a
five-day adventure on the Green River. Aboard the Rambler, a
ramshackle steamboat, Captain Bohannon Cartwright and his crew journey
184 miles and pick up two extra passengers along the way. The
boatmenrescue "Sir Henry" Cole, a former Shakespearean actor, and his
granddaughter Phoebe from their skiff when it overruns in a squall. As
romance blossoms between Phoebe and Captain Bo, a conflict escalates
between Confederate and Union forces fighting for control of the river.
Janice Holt Giles (1905-1979), author of nineteen books, lived and
wrote near Knifley, Kentucky, for thirty-four years. Her biography is
told in Janice Holt Giles: A Writer's Life.