A Conversation on Burn Down Master’s House in Ashland, Virginia w/ Eva McKend

April 9, 2026·18 min·1 clip

Clay Cane shares how his novel about enslaved resistance is rooted in his ancestors from Goochland, Virginia.

This episode of Clay Cane Extended features an interview from a book club stop for Cane's novel 'Burn Down Master's House,' recorded in Ashland, Virginia. Clay Cane introduces the segment, noting it was conducted by journalist Eva McKend. He shares that the book is set in Goochland, Virginia, where his ancestors are from, and begins by asking about surprising reader responses. Cane reveals readers often connect the characters to their own family histories, which he finds beautiful. He then provides a synopsis, stating the book aims to burn down misinformation about American chattel slavery by highlighting resistance. Cane explains his motivation stemmed from events like Kanye West's comments on slavery and Florida's curriculum changes. He discusses using historical fiction, inspired by authors like Arna Bonsham and Margaret Walker, to activate readers. The conversation shifts to book bans in Hanover County, Virginia, where Cane labels his novel a protest and act of literary resistance. He argues bans fear truth liberating both Black and white people. Cane then goes off-script to discuss white allyship, focusing on Thaddeus Stevens, an abolitionist who enslaved Charity Butler, a free Black woman. He details this historical case, emphasizing its complexity. Next, he talks about the fictional sisters Harriet and Sophia, who fight back to show enslavement cannot break the human spirit. Cane addresses depictions of violence, explaining he leans into it to highlight sexual assault against men and frame resistance as ritualistic release. He shares personal context, including his best friend's death during writing, adding emotional depth. The episode concludes with a promo for his SiriusXM show.

As heard by us

A book club conversation weighs family memory, Black history, resistance, and the complications of allyship.

A book club visit in Ashland, Virginia turns into a thoughtful look at how a book can carry public history into family memory. Eva McKend guides a conversation about readers seeing their own grandmothers, grandfathers, great grandmothers, and great grandfathers in characters…

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Why you'd press play

You will want this Ashland conversation when an admired abolitionist becomes the doorway into a more complicated story.

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