Book Reviews | Chapter 16

Sins of the Father

In My Father, the Pornographer, acclaimed novelist Chris Offutt confesses a dubious legacy

By Ed Tarkington | March 17, 2016

March 17, 2016 Chris Offutt’s father, science-fiction writer Andrew J. Offutt, died in 2013. His eldest son’s inheritance: a massive library of pornography, most of it written by Andrew Offutt himself under a variety of pseudonyms. In My Father, the Pornographer, Chris Offutt delves into his father’s career as the “King of Smut,” as well as his own memories of a haunted, fractured childhood. Offutt will appear at Crosstown Arts in Memphis on March 24, 2016, at 6 p.m.

Yum

Roy Blount Jr. serves up a mess of Southern essays and poems about cooking

By Michael Ray Taylor | March 16, 2016

March 16, 2016 Roy Blount Jr.’s twenty-fourth book, Save Room for Pie, is an eminently readable collection of food writing and humor drawn from his work for magazines and National Public Radio. The Vanderbilt graduate will discuss his new book at the Nashville Public Library on March 22, 2016, at 6:15 p.m.

A Perfect Marriage, Interrupted

In a new thriller, Nashville’s J.T. Ellison plots the unlikely disappearance of a golden-boy med student and the ensuing hell for his young wife

By Liz Garrigan | March 15, 2016

March 15, 2016 Aubrey and Josh Hamilton have been inseparable since they were tweens, and life is looking pretty good for them until Josh mysteriously disappears, and authorities finger Aubrey as the suspect. J.T. Ellison will discuss her new standalone mystery, No One Knows, at Parnassus Books in Nashville on March 22, 2016, at 6:30 p.m.

Beauty, Joy, and Struggle

Nate Marshall surveys his Chicago youth in his debut poetry collection, Wild Hundreds

By Maria Browning | March 10, 2016

March 10, 2016 Vanderbilt alum Nate Marshall grew up on Chicago’s troubled far South Side, miles and worlds away from the city’s tourist attractions and gleaming skyscrapers. His debut poetry collection, Wild Hundreds, evokes the beauty and joy that exist there alongside the struggle. Marshall will give a free public reading at Vanderbilt University in Nashville on March 18, 2016, at 4 p.m.

Mother, Father, Teacher, God

In Mrs. Ravenbach’s Way by William M. Akers, an epic and hilarious battle of wills ensues between a child and his domineering teacher

By Kathryn Justice Leache | March 8, 2016

March 8, 2016 The struggle is real for Toby Wilcox, a fourth-grader at the McKegway School for Clever and Gifted Children. In Mrs. Ravenbach’s Way by William M. Akers, spirited and independent Toby clashes with the overbearing and inflexible Mrs. Ravenbach, leading to an end-of-the-year showdown. Akers will read from his debut middle-grade novel at Parnassus Books in Nashville on March 12, 2016, at 2 p.m.

Reading as Life Practice

In Forest of Wonders Newbery winner Linda Sue Park gives middle-grade readers an imaginative place for considering moral dilemmas

By Beth Waltemath | March 7, 2016

March 7, 2016 Forest of Wonders is the first book in Linda Sue Park’s new fantasy trilogy, Wing and Claw. The Newbery winner will give a free public reading from her latest novel for middle-grade readers at Parnassus Books in Nashville on March 9, 2016, at 6:30 p.m.

Tias and Primas: On Knowing and Loving the Women Who Raise Us

By Prisca Dorcas Mojica Rodríguez, illustrated by Josie Del Castillo
Seal Press
304 pages
$30

“Within these pages, I found my abuela, my tías and my primas — laughing, crying, and nodding alongside me. This book is a gift of understanding, and loving one’s family, even when our families are complicated and painful. It’s a beautiful reminder of the power of storytelling and the profound connection of kinship.”

~ Paola Mendoza, author, organizer and filmmaker