Briefly Noted

“This book establishes that Horton Foote’s characters and themes come from Wharton, Texas, a region influenced more by the Deep South than the cowboy tradition of West Texas. But these interviews also establish that such stories are not place-specific. They are universal stories about going away and the eternal search of emotional and spiritual homes. Foote’s stories are revealed as reflecting the dislocation, loneliness, racial tension, and gender and class divisions of the United States.”

“Vigorously written, brave, and candid . . . a deeply moving, instructive account of embattled lives and loves striving for order in the face of a heartbreaking mental illness.”

“Creation Story explores parallels and intersections in the works of Dial and his fellow Alabamians, the remarkable quilters of Gee’s Bend. In the tradition of African American cemetery constructions and yard art, these artists harness the tactile properties and symbolic associations of cast-off materials in creating an art of profound beauty and evocative power. Produced against a backdrop of poverty and racism, these artworks have an appeal that crosses aesthetic, social, and geographical boundaries, earning them wide recognition as being among the most compelling art of our time.”

“Auto Zone Park, arguably the best minor-league baseball park built in the past 25 years, is nestled in a corner of downtown Memphis. Located across the street from the historic Peabody Hotel and two blocks from Beale Street, Auto Zone opened in 2000 to rave reviews. It is the phoenix that rose from the ashes of Russwood Park. Baseball enthusiasts remember Russwood and the players who roamed the field, like Dazzy Vance, one-arm Pete Gray, Big Klu, and Moonlight Graham. Images of Baseball: Baseball in Memphis highlights the history of the Chicks and the Redbirds and pays homage to the original amateur Chickasaws, the Red Sox, and the Blues.”