BOOKS, FILM, & MUSIC | By Tabitha Evans Moore | Editor & Publisher
LYNCHBURG, Tenn. — You may recognize her from The Moore County News offices on the historic Lynchburg Square or local public meetings, but did you also know that local reporter Roberta Nee Adams is a published author? In fact, she’s in talks with a major Hollywood studio about choosing her book, Rebecca’s Soliloquy, for a movie adaptation.
Moore County Public Library officials chose Roberta’s novel as their Brown Bag Book Club pick for January and she will discuss it at the January 30 meeting at the library. The events begins at 1 p.m.
A story passed down for five generations
The novel tells the story of Tennessee farmer’s wife Rebecca Moffatt, who undertakes a perilous 250-mile journey from Obion County, Tennessee to St. Louis, Missouri to rescue her imprisoned husband during the American Civil War with the help of two former slaves. It’s based on a true story – one of thousands of untold stories, most lost to history – of individual struggles and courage during the time period.
Roberta discovered the story during a conversation with her late mother-in-law, Alma Nelle Moffatt Rynearson, to whom she dedicates the book. It’s based on a family tale, passed down for generations, about Rynearson’s own great-grandmother, Jane Lathan. Roberta says she felt instantly captivated and knew she needed to tell the story, which had been handed down orally for five generations.
“We were sitting in her glider out back, when she told me that story, and it just hit me. I knew right away that I’d write it someday.”
Roberta says she decided to change the main character’s name from Jane to Rebecca in the novel because it just “rolled off the tongue”.
She and her “crack genealogist” sister, Sharon Nee Goodman, immediately started digging – looking for documentation and details about the story. The duo located numerous original records including a St. Louis Globe Democrat article detailing Augustus’s release from prison.
“She found a lot of information about Augustus – Jane/Rebecca’s husband – specifically about the size of the farm they owned and what they produced,” Roberta says. “We know from that research that by the 1860 census the family owned no slaves, meaning that they were likely freed prior to then but decided to stay on the farm.”
No surprise from the two daughters of a legendary local newsman, Larry Nee, Sr. – a longtime Tullahoma News reporter. He covered news and local politics in this area for over 60 years.
Roberta is a bit of a Renaissance woman with a broad life experience to choose from in her writing. She’s worked in commercial printing, served as a 9-1-1 dispatcher, and worked in clinical research for 23 years, even owning her own research company. After retiring, she decided to switch to journalism and currently serves as the lead reporter for The Moore County News here in Lynchburg. Her articles appear there as well as The Lynchburg Times, The Tullahoma News, and other area publications.
If you would like to buy the book and join in on the fun, you can purchase at Amazon by following this link. •
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