Editor’s Notes

This is our last newsletter before Chapter 16 takes its usual July hiatus, but never fear: We’ll be back on August 4 with new book coverage and literary news. In the meantime, make sure you’re subscribed to the newsletters for Humanities Tennessee and/or the Southern Festival of Books. An exciting announcement about the festival is coming soon! Speaking of exciting…

Summer has arrived, bringing hot weather and, at least for some of us, a little down time and more opportunities to relax with a book. If you happen to be in the mood for poetry, don’t miss Emily Choate’s roundup of recent collections, with books by Richard Tillinghast, Stephanie Niu, and Abby N. Lewis. Aram Goudsouzian interviews fellow historian Brian Kwoba about his book Hubert…

In recognition of the upcoming Juneteenth holiday, Chapter 16 is featuring an excerpt from a forthcoming book by Serina K. Gilbert and Learotha Williams Jr., From the Fiery Furnace to the Promise Land, which tells the story of a remarkable Dickson County community founded by formerly enslaved men and women after the Civil War. We also have Bradley Sides’ essay “Volcanic, Universal Inspiration,” a story about…

Father’s Day is coming up, and we’re marking the occasion with a trio of pieces that feature stories of fathers and their children. “July 16, 1944,” an essay by longtime contributor Chris Scott, is the story of “a curious man,” as Chris puts it, who saved himself and his yet-to-be-conceived offspring when a moment of caution overcame his natural inquisitiveness. Faye…

Memphis Magazine published a column by Alex Greene last week on the broad impact of the NEH funding cuts in the city. Chapter 16, especially through its media partnership with the Commercial Appeal, is part of that picture. University of Memphis historian Aram Goudsouzian, a regular Chapter 16 contributor, was also personally affected, losing a grant that would have supported completion of his new book, The Sports Page. As…

The funding crisis had us so preoccupied back in April that we failed to nod to National Poetry Month. But there’s always plenty of poetry news here in Tennessee. Some recent items of note:  Marcus Wicker announced a new poetry collection, Dear Mothership, due in 2026. Major Jackson shared some thoughts with Vanderbilt Magazine on how to read a poem. Caki Wilkinson received the Clarence…