Book Reviews

November 28, 2012 Steve Stern is “quite famous for being unknown,” according to The Globe and Mail, a Canadian newspaper. Since 1983, the Memphis native has published twelve novels and short-story collections; many of them have fallen out of print, but his work invariably receives prestigious awards and overwhelmingly rave reviews. Stern’s latest, The Book of Mischief, is a collection of new and selected stories inspired by Yiddish folklore. The book offers an opportunity for new readers to familiarize themselves with Stern’s work and for loyal fans to revisit some A-list stories and at the same time discover new gems.

November 26, 2012 Emily Arsenault’s third mystery features extensive excerpts from a fictional memoir, a pregnant detective, and a strong undercurrent of Nashville’s music heritage. In a world in which most mysteries are plot- or character-driven, Miss Me When I’m Gone can fairly claim to be driven by relationships—the kinds of relationships that have inspired many a country song.

November 19, 2012 Barbara Kingsolver’s epic 1998 novel, The Poisonwood Bible, offers a profound inquiry into the nature of faith and the meaning of family. At its core, her new novel asks another fundamental question: “Where will we go from here?” On November 27, Barbara Kingsolver will discuss Flight Behavior at the Nashville Public Library as part of the Salon@615 series. The event begins at 6:15 p.m.; doors open at 5:45.

November 13, 2012 The difficulty of finding work during the Depression drew poet and novelist James Still to Knott County, Kentucky, but it was the wild beauty of the place that kept him there. As he got to know the fiercely independent inhabitants of a harsh landscape, he began to write about their lives. In The Hills Remember, editor Ted Olson, professor of Appalachian Studies at East Tennessee State University in Johnson City, has put together a collection of Still’s short pieces spanning more than forty years. In them Still’s own voice emerges, as clear and as pure as a dipperful of cold mountain water.