Chapter 16 - Part 522

This Land Is Not Necessarily Your Land

Will Kaufman’s political biography of Woody Guthrie teaches a lesson in homegrown radicalism

By Paul V. Griffith | August 4, 2011

August 4, 2011 Folk singer Woody Guthrie is best known for “This Land Is Your Land,” a patriotic travelogue that has become America’s second national anthem. Like Guthrie’s own image, however, the song has been gutted of its political importance over the years. In Woody Guthrie, American Radical, Will Kaufman reclaims Guthrie’s radicalism, painting a picture of an inconsistent yet passionate crusader who saw tyranny as the greatest of all evils. At noon on August 10, Kaufman will present a live musical documentary on the songs and politics of Woody Guthrie, American Radical at the Nashville Public Library as part of the Salon@615 series.

A Blues Man's Biography

Philip Ratcliffe documents the life and music of legendary blues artist Mississippi John Hurt

By Morey Hill | August 3, 2011

August 3, 2011 Philip Ratcliffe was enthralled with the music of Mississippi John Hurt from the moment he first heard one of Hurt’s recordings in 1970. After a trip to Mississippi in 2003, Ratcliffe decided to document Hurt’s life. It took six years of research and writing, but Ratcliffe finally completed the first biography of the legendary blues artist. Mississippi John Hurt: His Life, His Times, His Blues chronicles the man’s musical career and captures his warm, unaffected character. Ratcliffe will discuss and sign his biography at The Booksellers at Laurelwood in Memphis on August 4 at 6 p.m.

Five Generations

The Knoxville News Sentinel profiles poet Linda Parsons Marion

By Margaret Renkl | August 3, 2011

August 3, 2011 It came as a surprise to Linda Parsons Marion when she realized that the poems she had slowly been writing for an untitled collection amounted to an exploration of five generations of her family, starting with her grandparents and continuing through the birth of her own first grandchild. From that moment on, the book had a title: Bound. The word is “very laden with so many layers of meaning—goodness, ambiguity, negativity,” Marion told the Knoxville News Sentinel.

Potter 2G

Victoria Schwab grew up with her head in J.K. Rowling’s fictional world; now she’s writing fiction of her own

By Susannah Felts | August 2, 2011

August 2, 2011 In The Near Witch, the debut young-adult novel from Nashville author Victoria Schwab, an unfamiliar boy shows up in the insular village of Near, which has not been visited by strangers in decades. Soon, children are going missing from their homes, night after night. Only a young girl, Lexi, who narrates the story, is convinced that the strange boy is not to blame. Darkly atmospheric, this story by a twenty-three-year-old debut author is an accomplished take on the classic fairy-tale form. Victoria Schwab will read from The Near Witch as part of the “Ash To Nash Tour” of YA writers. They will be in Kingsport on August 6, Knoxville on August 7, and Brentwood on August 8. For details, visit the tour’s website here.

A Gift for Adoration

Celebrating the life and words of poet Wilmer Mills

By Jeff Hardin | August 1, 2011

August 1, 2011 Wilmer Mills, 41, a Tennessee poet with ties to Sewanee and Chattanooga, died on June 25 of liver cancer. He leaves behind a wife, two young children, and many family members and dear friends. Among them is poet Jeff Hardin, his friend and writing partner of two decades. Within twenty-hours of Mills’s passing, Hardin wrote this remembrance.

Early Recognition

Tennessee writer Kevin Wilson is earning widespread acclamation for The Family Fang—and the book isn’t even out yet

By Morey Hill | July 29, 2011

July 29, 2011 Critics are raving about Kevin Wilson’s remarkably original debut novel, The Family Fang, which centers on a somewhat dysfunctional family of performance artists.

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