Archivist Tom Kanon examines Tennessee’s role in the War of 1812
February 27, 2015 The nearly forgotten War of 1812, with the related Creek War, made Andrew Jackson a hero and launched Tennessee to national prominence. In Tennesseans at War, 1812 – 1815: Andrew Jackson, the Creek War, and the Battle of New Orleans, state archivist Tom Kanon details the causes, facets, and consequences of a fight that should be more remembered.
With Into the Savage Country, Shannon Burke delivers a grand adventure in the tradition of Jack London
February 26, 2015 Set in the Wild West of the early nineteenth century, Shannon Burke’s new historical novel, Into the Savage Country, is a deftly written novel of love and adventure that evokes the classic tales of Jack London and Robert Louis Stevenson. Burke will appear at the Laurel Theater in Knoxville on March 5, 2015, at 7 p.m. in an event sponsored by the Knoxville Writer’s Guild. On April 6, 2015, at 7 p.m., he will give a reading at the John C. Hodges Library on the University of Tennessee campus in Knoxville as part of the Writers in the Library series.
John Jeremiah Sullivan takes home the 2015 Windham Campbell Literature Prize for nonfiction—and $150,000
February 26, 2015 Sewanee grad John Jeremiah Sullivan has already won two National Magazine Awards, a Whiting Writers’ Award, and a Pushcart Prize. Now he’s added a new title to his list of accolades: the 2015 Windham Campbell Literature Prize for nonfiction.
Billboard recognizes spoken-word artist Minton Sparks
February 25, 2015 Billboard magazine recently highlighted Murfreesboro native Minton Sparks in a profile that attempts to define the work of this genre-defying artist.
Mosquitoland, a debut YA novel by David Arnold, introduces a snarky but beguiling teen protagonist
February 25, 2015 Mosquitoland, the debut novel from former Nashvillian David Arnold, introduces a beguiling new voice in young-adult fiction. Edgy, insightful, and full of heart, the novel is a road narrative that readers of all ages should fall for. Arnold will appear at Parnassus Books in Nashville on March 3, 2015, at 6:30 p.m.
The young hero of Where All Light Tends to Go, David Joy’s debut novel, struggles to overcome a legacy of crime
February 24, 2015 Jacob McNeely, the eighteen-year-old hero of David Joy’s Where All Light Tends to Go, dreams of starting a new life somewhere else but feels stuck in his piddling Appalachian home town, doomed to follow the path of his meth-dealing father. David Joy will appear at The Booksellers at Laurelwood in Memphis on March 3, 2015, at 6:30 pm.; at Parnassus Books in Nashville on May 1, 2015, at 6:30 p.m.; and at Union Ave. Books in Knoxville on May 2, 2015, at 2 p.m.
