A historical coming-of-age tale set in a place where truth was stranger than fiction.In 1809, when his widowed mother decides to move him and his younger brother to the new Mississippi Territory, E.Z. Perkins is thrown into a dangerous new world. Their new home lies somewhere along the bloodiest road in American history-the Natchez Trace. Filled with cutthroat bandits, angry Indian warriors, and monstrous creatures, the road has earned the name "The Devil's Backbone." Bandits target E. Z. from the moment he begins the journey as he discovers one of their secrets. Throughout the chase, survival depends upon E. Z. learning which of his fears are real and which are imagined. Young adult historical fiction with themes of survival, adventure, and exploration.

With a history as dark and bloody as any in our nation, the Natchez Trace has always been more than just a thoroughfare. Growing out of a need for a return route for flatboats that floated down the Mississippi, the Trace winds up from Natchez, Mississippi, through Alabama and ends in Nashville, Tennessee. From the start, the Natchez Trace was alive with rugged pioneers, politicians, ladies of fashion, settlers, soldiers, and robbers. You'll learn about the trail and the notable figures who traversed it, such as Aaron Burr, Andrew Jackson, George Washington, Daniel Boone, and Meriwether Lewis, whose death on the Trace is still a mystery. Leading all the way to Texas, the Natchez Trace was the road for troops going to the Battle of New Orleans, the path walked by the men who were to die at the Alamo, and an escape route for slaves. The Devil's Backbone is chock full of the ever-changing parade of travelers along the Natchez Trace. The author tells the story of the people who built America, crossing a wilderness to create a nation.

The crops have failed and his family is starving, so fourteen year-old Brody slips out into the early morning darkness, desperate to find food in the foothills of the Devil's Backbone. A terrible accident, a rescue by a delusional ex-slave, and a journey to find his family has Brody growing into a man... and also wanted for murder. "A riveting tale of adventure with a cast of characters as tough and timeless as the rifles we make."-Anthony Imperato, President of Henry Repeating Arms "James Babb has crafted the extraordinary. Please, please do yourself a favor and read this."-Robert Bacon, The Perfect Write. "The Devil's Backbone is a humble adventure into the hard lives of those who lived in the shadow of a war that had long since ended... I couldn't put this book down, James Babb wrote a novel that is engaging. The hunger, the cold, and the friendship, it's hard not to get drawn into this story.-Mike Kendra, CivilWarTalk.com