1929. The novelist, Scott, broke with the mores of the traditional Southern upper class family in which she was brought up and for the rest of her life embraced the bohemian life style. However, she still drew upon her childhood experiences for material in her novels. She used the Civil War as the background for The Wave and it is considered Evelyn's greatest critical and commercial success. The book begins: It was so quiet in Charleston Harbour, that Dickie Ross, working his rowboat out to sea, felt as if half drowned in the tides that he could hear, while they moved invisibly. That was the night, trickling from the blades of his oars; or, if the wind ran along his forehead and lifted his hair, it was the night, too, making his mind vague. Fort Sumter was there, however, compelling him to excitement, preventing his enjoyment of the dreamier elation of freedom. He rose, faced forward, and pushed hard, drawing his oars up until they dug into his chest over his heart, which was so large with the very amplitude of darkness as to impede his breathing.
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