Tobacco Road is a novel by Erskine Caldwell, first published in 1932. It tells the story of the Lesters, a poor, white, sharecropping family living in rural Georgia during the Great Depression. The family is headed by Jeeter Lester, a lazy, shiftless man who is unable to provide for his family. His wife, Ada, is a hardworking woman who does her best to keep the family together, but her efforts are often thwarted by Jeeter's lack of ambition.
The Lesters live in a dilapidated house on a tobacco farm, and their lives are filled with poverty and despair. Jeeter is unable to find work, and the family is barely able to survive on the meager income they receive from sharecropping. Jeeter's daughter, Ellie May, is a young girl who is desperate for love and attention, but her father is too preoccupied with his own problems to provide it.
The novel follows the Lesters as they struggle to survive in their harsh environment. Jeeter's brother, Dude, is a bootlegger who provides the family with some much-needed income, but his activities also bring danger and violence to the family. As the novel progresses, the Lesters' situation becomes increasingly desperate, and they are eventually forced to leave their home and move to the city in search of a better life.
The novel paints a vivid picture of life in the rural South during the Great Depression. It is a powerful and heartbreaking story of a family struggling to survive in a harsh and unforgiving environment. The novel is a stark reminder of the poverty and desperation that many people faced during this time, and it serves as a powerful reminder of the importance of family and community in times of hardship.