Chapter 16 - Part 11

Are We Supposed To Be Here?

In The Affairs of the Falcóns, Melissa Rivero explores the plight of an undocumented mother in 1990s New York

By Emily Choate | September 19, 2019

In her debut novel, The Affairs of the Falcóns, Melissa Rivero creates an indelible protagonist in undocumented, Peruvian-born Ana, whose life as a mother and wife in mid-1990s New York is a constant, tenuous gauntlet. Melissa Rivero will discuss The Affairs of the Falcóns at the Southern Festival of Books in Nashville, held on October 11-13.

Of Facts and Fables

Maurice Carlos Ruffin discusses his mesmerizing debut novel, We Cast a Shadow

By Emily Choate | September 6, 2019

Maurice Carlos Ruffin casts a satirical spell in his debut novel, We Cast A Shadow. Its unnamed narrator, driven by fierce love for his son, makes decisions that expose his family to the dangers of a world that may seem dystopian but in fact lies excruciatingly close to our own. Ruffin will appear at the 2019 Southern Festival of Books, held in Nashville on October 11-13.

Eye of the Beholder

Ottessa Moshfegh discusses beauty, humor, and the ecstasy she finds in writing

By Emily Choate | August 19, 2019

By turns provoking and illuminating, Ottessa Moshfegh’s My Year of Rest and Relaxation speaks to our modern anxieties and absurdities, revealing what endures inside us no matter how we try to numb or distract ourselves. Ottessa Moshfegh will appear at the Southern Festival of Books, held in Nashville on Oct. 11-13.

In That Sacred Space and Sound

WordStream, a Knoxville-based reading series, showcases an exciting cross section of writers

By Emily Choate | August 8, 2019

WordStream: The Weekly Writer’s Voice, a reading series launched earlier this year in Knoxville, provides a stage for an exciting array of writers and performers. The show is recorded live each Friday on the WDVX Stage at the Knoxville Visitors Center.

Pursuers of the Myth

In The Secret Token, Andrew Lawler excavates the many theories surrounding the vanished colony of Roanoke

By Emily Choate | June 11, 2019

In The Secret Token, Andrew Lawler investigates the fate of the vanished colony of Roanoke Island, the first English settlement on North America. Andrew Lawler will appear at Parnassus Books in Nashville on June 18 and at the East Tennessee History Center in Knoxville on June 19.

Waging War Through an Ethic of Care

In To Live Here, You Have to Fight, Jessica Wilkerson examines the role of women activists in Appalachia

By Emily Choate | May 30, 2019

In To Live Here, You Have to Fight, Jessica Wilkerson sets out to show that women were consistently present, active, and influential in social-justice and labor movements in twentieth-century Appalachia, bringing with them the insistence that their roles as caregivers be counted as worthy aspects of citizenship.

Camilla and the Caterpillars

By Frances Figart, illustrated by Matt Brass
Smokies Life
68 pages
$14.95

A young girl’s encounter with an extraordinary caterpillar in the Great Smoky Mountains leads her and her family on a quest to plant a national park right in their own backyard.

This environmentally themed chapter book for ages 6 through 11 introduces young readers to important ecological concepts including habitat loss and the interdependence of native species and offers a compelling grassroots solution through native-plant gardening that invites anyone to take part in addressing the growing biodiversity crisis.

~the publisher