Chapter 16 - Part 580

A Captured Mind

In his new novel, David Madden explores the psychological consequences of witnessing a terrible crime

By Susannah Felts | July 28, 2010

July 28, 2010 Based on plot summary alone, Abducted by Circumstance, a new novel by acclaimed Knoxville-born author David Madden, sounds like a poolside page-turner. Yet this quiet and finely crafted novel is less a psychological thriller than an engrossing, complex exploration of a troubled woman’s identity. It is also a daring narrative experiment in point of view.

Pornography for Oenophiles

Matthew Gavin Frank’s account of the six months he spent picking grapes in Barolo is ripe reading for lovers of wine, food, and Italy

By Liz Garrigan | July 27, 2010

July 27, 2010 After making over-medium eggs in Juneau for an ex-goldpanner, Matthew Gavin Frank decided to take the advice of the patron who’d just spit out his food: “In a world full of idiots, you have to go to the place with the fewest idiots.” Barolo is Frank’s account of the six months he spent living and working—the back-breaking labor of grape harvesting—in Barolo, Italy (pop. 646), in the country’s northern Piedmont region. He will read from his book at Davis-Kidd Booksellers in Memphis on July 27 at 6 p.m. and at Davis-Kidd Booksellers in Nashville on July 28 at 7 p.m.

In Search of the Moments

Greil Marcus turns his eye toward the music of Van Morrison

By Paul McCoy | July 26, 2010

July 26, 2010 Greil Marcus isn’t simply a music critic. He is, as Nick Hornby calls him, “peerless, not only as a rock writer but as a cultural historian.” In Marcus’s writing, music is often the point of departure. Where the vehicle goes from there is anyone’s guess, but you can bet it will be an interesting, often thrilling ride. Marcus’s latest book, When That Rough God Goes Riding: Listening to Van Morrison, considers the indefinable moments in an enigmatic performer’s work where the artist transcends ordinary communication and reaches for the sublime.

Killer Dreams

An aspiring author heads to Killer Nashville, a conference designed to help unpublished writers land a book contract

By Chris Scott | July 23, 2010

July 23, 2010 Killer Nashville began in 2006 when Clay Stafford, a Franklin-based writer and film producer, threw a conference together in about four months, given a last-minute boost by the attendance of bestselling suspense-author Carol Higgins Clark. Stafford soon had a successful series, the goal of most mystery writers, on his hands. Now an international affair, Killer Nashville still pulls in big names—this year’s guest of honor is Jeffery Deaver—and offers four tracks: writing, forensics, marketing, and a fan track for public book signings and author events, as well as a contest, the Claymore Dagger Award, to honor an unpublished work worthy of publication. Chapter 16 contributor Chris Scott gives an inside look at the conference, which this year will be held August 20-22.

Evolution of an American Poet

The poetry of Robert Hass is surveyed in a new collection

By Maria Browning | July 22, 2010

July 22, 2010 Former U.S. Poet Laureate Robert Hass has been lauded for his work for more than three decades. The Apple Trees at Olema brings together selected poems from each of his five award-winning collections, as well as new work, and gives readers a glimpse into the evolution of one of our greatest living poets. Robert Hass will give a public reading at the Sewanee Writers’ Conference on July 23 at 11 a.m.

Back Where We Come From

Steve Yarbrough explores the mystery of memory and the complexity of the past

By Ed Tarkington | July 21, 2010

July 21, 2010 Cast against the dark history of the 1962 Ole Miss Riot, Steve Yarbrough’s Safe from the Neighbors is both an engrossing mystery novel and a quietly incisive exploration of how even the seemingly remote aspects of our lives are shaped by the tides of history. Steve Yarbrough will give a free public reading at the Sewanee Writers’ Conference on July 21 at 8:15 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