02254cam a2200409 i 4500 253822526 TxAuBib 20160220120000.0 151118s2015||||||||||||||||||||||||eng|u 2015373938 9780062325891 0062325892 (OCoLC)922982152 TxAuBib rda Hickam, Homer H., 1943- Carrying Albert home : the somewhat true story of a man, his wife, and her alligator / Homer Hickam. First edition. New York, NY : William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, [2015] ©2015. xvii, 398 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm. txt rdacontent n rdamedia nc rdacarrier "This book is a work of fiction"--verso. "The long-awaited prequel to the bestselling memoir Rocket Boys"-- dust jacket. 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. 20160220. Man-woman relationships Fiction. Husband and wife Fiction. Alligators as pets Fiction. Automobile travel. Fiction. Coal miners Fiction. Florida Fiction. West Virginia Fiction. Hickam, Homer H., 1943- TXMCP