The Wettest County in the World
by Matt Bondurantliterary work· published 2008
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The Wettest County in the World is a 2008 historical novel by Matt Bondurant, an American writer who features his grandfather Jack and grand-uncles Forrest and Howard as the main characters in the novel. The book tells of the trio during the Depression and Prohibition in rural Virginia, who made a living bootlegging moonshine. The novel is told from both the perspectives of the three Bondurant brothers, mainly focusing on the youngest, Jack, and of the writer Sherwood Anderson, who described Franklin County in that period as the "wettest county in the world" while working there as a journalist during Prohibition. The film Lawless (2012), directed by John Hillcoat, is based on the book with a screenplay by Nick Cave.
Adaptations (1)
The Wettest County in the World was adapted into a 2012 film.
Lawless2012 · film · 116 min · dir. John Hillcoat · IMDb ↗In 1931, the Bondurant brothers of Franklin County, Virginia, run a multipurpose backwoods establishment that hides their true business — bootlegging. Middle brother Forrest is the brain of the operation; older Howard is the brawn, and younger Jack, the lookout. Though the local police have taken bribes and left the brothers alone, a violent war erupts when a sadistic lawman from Chicago arrives and tries to shut down the Bondurants operation.
