A Publication of Humanities Tennessee

Home Is a State of Mind

Simon Han’s appropriately titled debut novel, Nights When Nothing Happened, is a beautifully rendered meditation on what it means to belong — to a family, to a culture, to a particular place and time. Han will appear at a virtual event hosted by The Porch in Nashville on February 15.

Why Merle Haggard Deserves a Nobel Prize

In a wide-ranging interview with Chapter 16, music journalist and biographer Peter Guralnick recalls some of his most famous subjects, from Solomon Burke to Johnny Cash, and explains why the longest piece in his new collection of profiles, Looking to Get Lost, “was the story I felt I had to write.”

Why Merle Haggard Deserves a Nobel Prize

Spenser Hits 50

Spenser faces an old nemesis in Someone to Watch Over Me, Ace Atkins’ ninth addition to the late Robert B. Parker’s much-loved series. Accompanied by his friend Hawk and new protégé Mattie, the detective chases a billionaire sex trafficker from Boston to the Caribbean, drawing the interest of the strange villain known as the Gray Man.

From Fur Traders to Chart Toppers

Hidden History of Music Row by Brian Allison, Elizabeth Elkins, and Vanessa Olivarez is a deep dive into the history one of Nashville’s most magnetic areas. From early fur traders to fringe, this book details the guts, glam, and glory of Nashville’s most iconic neighborhood and the people who made it famous.

An Uptick in Fondness for the World

In A Swim in a Pond in the Rain, George Saunders relates the insights he has gathered from 20 years of teaching 19th-century Russian short stories to aspiring writers. Saunders will discuss the book at a ticketed virtual event hosted by Parnassus Books in Nashville on January 19.

Why Am I Alive?

In Nick, a new novel depicting the life of Nick Carraway before the turbulent summer of The Great Gatsby, Michael Farris Smith drags his hero through war, heartbreak, and the violent underworld of New Orleans.

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